United States of America - August 2025

On 11 August, President Donald Trump ordered federal control of the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia (D.C.), after declaring a ‘crime emergency’ and invoking the D.C. Home Rule Act. He further directed the Attorney General to temporarily oversee D.C. police, deployed National Guard units (eventually armed) from D.C. and six states, and tasked federal law enforcement agencies with street-level policing. The decision follows an emergency declaration related to ‘the magnitude of the violent crime crisis’ despite declines in crime rates in recent years. It is the first time that the D.C. Metropolitan Police has been placed under federal control. Mayor Muriel Bowser highlighted the unprecedented nature of the decision and the intrusion on the District’s autonomy, but announced cooperation with federal officials. Pursuant to the Home Rule Act and notification of congressional committees, federal control of police lasted 30 days. National Guard members were still deployed in D.C. in September. The President has indicated that similar moves in other cities could follow.

Sources: The White House, Reuters, The Guardian, CNN