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Attorney General Pam Bondi has officially signed an order that rescinds Washington, DC’s sanctuary city policies and transfers authority over the Metropolitan Police Department to the head of the DEA amid a declared crime emergency.
Some shit you should know before you read: If you’re unaware, earlier this week President Donald Trump signed an executive order declaring a crime emergency in Washington, DC, which granted federal authorities (specifically Attorney General Pam Bondi) control over the city’s police department. Trump justified the move by arguing that violent crime in the nation’s capital has spiraled out of control, making the city unsafe for residents, workers, and tourists. In contrast, DC officials have pushed back, pointing to FBI and DOJ data showing that violent crime in 2024 dropped to its lowest level in 30 years, despite a higher per capita crime rate compared to national averages. However, Trump and the president of the DC Police Union dispute those statistics, pointing to a recent scandal in which a senior DC police official was placed on administrative leave earlier this summer for allegedly falsifying crime data.
What’s going on now: In a notable development, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued an order dismantling Washington, DC’s long-standing sanctuary city protections, marking a sharp shift in how the city’s police interact with federal immigration authorities. Bondi explicitly rescinded three key Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) directives (one issued just hours earlier by Chief Pamela Smith) that had limited cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, including prohibitions on making arrests solely based on immigration status or sharing database information with ICE. With Bondi’s order in effect, MPD officers are now directed to fully cooperate with federal agencies, including providing information, transportation, and support during immigration operations, even when no other criminal activity is involved.
Alongside the policy reversal, Bondi appointed DEA Administrator Terry Cole as the city’s “emergency police commissioner.” Under this new chain of command, Cole now holds all powers previously vested in the chief of police and must approve any operational directives issued by MPD leadership. Bondi justified this move as necessary to ensure consistent enforcement of federal priorities during what the Trump administration has labeled a public safety crisis.
In addition to the immigration crackdown, Bondi also instructed DC police to strictly enforce a local crowd control statute prohibiting the obstruction of streets, building entrances, and parks—especially during protests or unauthorized gatherings.
In response to Bondi’s move, DC officials swiftly condemned the action as unlawful federal overreach and a direct violation of the city’s autonomy. Mayor Muriel Bowser posted on X, “There is no statute that conveys the District’s personnel authority to a federal official,” reaffirming her stance that DC governance remains in local hands. DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb echoed that sentiment in a legal letter to MPD Chief Pamela Smith, writing, “It is my opinion that the Bondi Order is unlawful, and that you are not legally obligated to follow it.” Councilmember Christina Henderson was even more direct, stating, “Respectfully, the Attorney General does not have the authority to revoke laws.”
