Members of DEA and police patrol streets near the Wharf in Washington, D.C. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)
400 NATIONAL GUARD MEMBERS DESCEND UPON DC; EXPANDED CRIME CRACKDOWN EXPECTED WEDNESDAY NIGHT
While operations began with a focus on nighttime, they are ramping up into a continuous 24/7 cycle.
In addition, D.C. police will extend a juvenile curfew zone in the Navy Yard through Aug. 31, police Chief Pamela Smith announced Thursday. The zone was established after police say a juvenile opened fire in the direction of other minors with a stolen gun, though no one was injured. Police say as many as 100 teens have gathered at night and caused trouble in the Navy Yard throughout the summer.
Protests have popped up across the city opposing Trump’s takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the presence of the National Guard.
One man was charged with assaulting an officer after he threw a sandwich at a CBP agent and called the officer a "fascist."
"He thought it was funny," Washington, D.C., U.S. Attorney Jeannine Pirro said of the incident. "Well, he doesn’t think it’s funny today, because we charged with him with a felony."
INSIDE THE WASHINGTON, DC HOMELESS HOT SPOTS TRUMP HAS VOWED TO CLEAN UP
A police checkpoint stopping vehicles was set up on 14th Street on Wednesday night, and protesters surrounded the checkpoint and shouted, "Go home fascists!"
D.C. crime statistics show that violent crime hit a 30-year low in 2024; down 35% from the previous year. And this year, it’s down 26% from last year at this time.
Eight hundred National Guard members willl deploy in Washington, D.C., to crack down on crime. (Reuters/Annabelle Gordon)
"There's potentially a drop from where we were in 2023. I think that there's a possibility that crime has come down. But the department is reporting that in 2024, crime went down 35% – violent crime – and another 25% through August of this year. That is preposterous to suggest that cumulatively we've seen 60-plus percent drops in violent crime from where we were in ’23, because we're out on the street. We know the calls we're responding to," he told NBC News.
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MPD’s 3rd District commander was suspended after MPD said he was changing crime statistics to minimize serious crimes.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trumps-federal-crime-operation-brings-100-arrests-800-national-guard-troops-washington