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Trump’s Crime Claims About DC Fall Short of Facts Amid Federal Takeover
President Donald Trump has claimed that Washington, D.C. reached its “highest murder rate probably ever” in 2023, using this assertion to justify his unprecedented federal takeover of the city’s police department. However, an examination of crime statistics shows these claims significantly misrepresent the actual situation.
On August 11, Trump declared a “crime emergency” in the nation’s capital, signing an executive order placing the Metropolitan Police Department under federal control for at least 30 days and deploying D.C. National Guard troops to the city.
“Murders in 2023 reached the highest rate probably ever. They say 25 years, but they don’t know what that means because it just goes back 25 years,” Trump claimed during a press conference announcing the measures.
Crime data experts quickly challenged these assertions. According to Jeff Asher, co-founder of AH Datalytics and former CIA analyst, “D.C.’s murder rate in 2023 was 39 per 100,000 which was the highest in the city since 2003. That was still down more than 50% from 1991’s murder rate of more than 80 per 100,000 when the city had 482 murders.”
Adam Gelb, president and CEO of the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ), confirmed these findings, citing FBI data showing Washington’s murder rate “peaked in 1991 at 80.6 and was at 38.9 in 2023 and 27.5 in 2024.”
More significantly, Trump’s claims ignore recent positive trends. Statistics released by the Metropolitan Police Department on the same day as Trump’s remarks showed homicides had decreased by 32% from 2023 to 2024 and by another 12% in 2025 so far. The CCJ reported that homicides fell 19% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia reported in January that violent crime overall for 2024 was down 35% from the previous year and was “the lowest it has been in over 30 years.”
Trump’s executive order declared “crime is out of control” with “rising violence,” yet the city’s data showed a 26% reduction in overall violent crime, with significant decreases across categories including sex abuse cases (down 50%), assaults with dangerous weapons (down 20%), and robberies (down 28%).
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser pushed back against Trump’s characterization, stating, “We are not experiencing a spike in crime but a decrease in crime.”
Trump also made questionable international comparisons, claiming D.C.’s murder rate was “higher than that of Bogota, Colombia, Mexico City, some of the places that you hear about as being the worst places on Earth.” He called D.C.’s rate “No. 1 that we can find anywhere in the world.”
Asher cautioned against such comparisons, noting it’s “generally inadvisable to compare crime rates between cities, especially international cities with populations many times that of DC.” According to a report from the Center for Public Safety Initiatives at Rochester Institute of Technology, Washington ranked fourth among 24 U.S. cities in homicide rates in 2024, behind St. Louis, New Orleans, and Detroit.
Trump did accurately describe the surge in auto-related crimes. “The number of car thefts has doubled over the past five years and the number of carjackings has more than tripled,” he said. Asher confirmed this was “an accurate description,” though noting both crimes have fallen considerably after peaking in 2023.
The federal intervention includes multiple components. Under the 1973 Home Rule Act, Trump took control of the Metropolitan Police Department for an initial 30 days. Additionally, approximately 850 federal law enforcement agents from agencies including the FBI, DEA, Secret Service and Department of Homeland Security were deployed across the city.
About 800 National Guard troops were also activated, with the Defense Department stating they would serve in “administrative and logistical roles, as well as providing a physical presence in support of law enforcement.”
For the takeover to extend beyond the initial 30-day period, Congress would need to pass a resolution authorizing an extension.
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8 Comments
This seems like a complex issue with valid concerns on both sides. Curious to see how the federal takeover of the DC police department will play out and impact public safety.
Good point. The long-term implications of this federal action will be important to monitor, both in terms of crime trends and civil liberties.
The President’s claims about DC’s murder rate being the highest ever seem to be inaccurate based on the data analysis presented. Transparency and factual reporting are crucial here.
While crime is certainly a serious concern, it’s troubling to see the federal government taking such an aggressive, unilateral approach in DC. Hope this doesn’t set a dangerous precedent.
Agreed, the federal takeover of local policing is a significant step that requires very careful consideration of the implications for civil liberties and democratic norms.
Appreciate the fact check on the President’s statements about DC’s crime rates. It’s important we rely on objective data and expert analysis, not just political rhetoric.
Interesting to see the crime data being challenged. It’s important to rely on facts and expert analysis rather than political rhetoric, especially when it comes to public safety issues.
Agreed, we need an objective, data-driven assessment to understand the true situation in DC and whether the federal intervention is warranted.