On a humid August night in Washington, D.C., a violent attempted carjacking left a young tech worker bloodied and concussed—an incident that would soon ripple far beyond the city’s borders, igniting national debate and prompting sweeping federal intervention. The sentencing of two Maryland teenagers for their roles in the attack on Edward Coristine, a 19-year-old former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employee, has become a flashpoint in the ongoing clash over crime, justice, and federal power in America’s cities.
The attack occurred in the early hours of August 3, 2025, on the 1400 block of Swann Street NW, just a few blocks from the city’s bustling Logan Circle. According to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), at least ten juveniles approached Coristine and his girlfriend as they stood next to their vehicle. When the group demanded the car, Coristine pushed his significant other into the vehicle to shield her, only to be set upon by the group in a brutal assault. He was left bloodied, badly beaten, and fearing he was concussed. The incident, as reported by ABC News and the New York Daily News, quickly gained attention—especially after photos of Coristine’s injuries circulated widely on social media.
Within days, the MPD arrested two 15-year-olds from Hyattsville, Maryland—a boy and a girl—who were later identified as the primary assailants. Both pleaded guilty: the boy to felony assault, robbery, and simple assault; the girl to simple assault. On Tuesday, October 14, 2025, a judge sentenced the boy to 12 months of probation and the girl to nine months. The court also prohibited them from contacting each other or entering D.C. except for school, work, or family obligations. As ABC News noted, the teenagers had faced the possibility of being held in custody under the D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services until age 21, but the judge emphasized the juvenile court’s focus on rehabilitation over punishment.
The case quickly became a lightning rod in the national conversation about urban crime and justice. Coristine, a programmer and early recruit to Elon Musk’s controversial DOGE initiative—known by his high school nickname “Big Balls”—had recently risen to prominence for his work on the project. His assault, and the relatively light sentences handed down to his attackers, sparked outrage online and in political circles. Both Musk and former President Donald Trump seized on the incident. Trump, posting on his TruthSocial platform, declared, “Crime in Washington, D.C., is totally out of control. The most recent victim was beaten mercilessly by local thugs,” sharing a photo of a bloodied Coristine.
It wasn’t just rhetoric. Less than three weeks after the attack, President Trump announced a dramatic escalation in federal oversight of the capital. On August 11, 2025, he invoked the DC Home Rule Act to place the Metropolitan Police Department under federal control, citing the need to crack down on crime, address homelessness, and clean up graffiti. According to Daily Mail and ABC News, Trump also ordered a surge of federal law enforcement and the National Guard into Washington, D.C. The President’s “beautification” and safety effort was framed as a direct response to what he described as “raging crime” in the city.
The results, at least in the short term, were striking. Violent crime—including homicides and assaults—declined by around 25 percent compared to previous weeks, according to police data cited by Daily Mail. Trump was quick to take credit, telling reporters, “It’s like a different place, it’s a different city. Everybody’s safe now.” He claimed that local politicians had told him they could now go out for dinner with their spouses without fear.
But the federal intervention did not go unchallenged. Leaders in D.C. and other Democrat-run cities decried the move as unconstitutional, warning of the dangers of military involvement in domestic policing. Legal challenges soon followed, particularly as Trump expanded his crackdown to other cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Memphis, and Portland. In Chicago, for example, an appeals court ruled that troops sent by Trump could remain under federal control but could not be deployed, pending further arguments. U.S. District Judge April Perry blocked the deployment of troops in Chicago for at least two weeks, citing violations of the 10th and 14th Amendments.
In a written order, Judge Perry reflected on the nation’s historical aversion to military involvement in civilian affairs, writing, “Not even the Founding Father most ardently in favor of a strong federal government [Alexander Hamilton] believed that one state’s militia could be sent to another state for the purposes of political retribution.” Illinois Governor JB Pritzker welcomed the ruling, stating, “The court confirmed what we all know: There is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago.”
In Portland and other cities, similar court battles unfolded. Federal agents were restricted in their operational activities, and judges issued orders regarding the conduct and equipment used by federal personnel, particularly in response to protests. In some cases, federal agents were banned from using certain riot-control weapons against peaceful protesters and journalists. Meanwhile, federal prosecutors in Chicago filed new charges against individuals accused of assaulting federal officers, indicating that the legal and political battles over federal intervention were far from over.
The story of Edward Coristine’s assault and its aftermath has thus become a microcosm of broader debates over crime, justice, and the limits of federal authority. Supporters of Trump’s actions argue that the crackdown has made cities safer and restored order, pointing to the sharp drop in violent crime in D.C. Critics, however, warn that such interventions undermine local control, threaten civil liberties, and set a dangerous precedent for the use of military force in civilian life.
As the legal battles continue and the nation grapples with questions of justice and governance, the experience of one young tech worker on a Washington street remains a powerful reminder of the human stakes behind the headlines—and the ways in which a single night’s violence can echo across the country.
