Mayor Bowser, DC leaders testify on crime policies

WASHINGTON - A congressional hearing is putting city leaders in the hot seat Thursday as lawmakers hear testimony on juvenile crime and policing policies in the nation’s capital. 

FOX 5’s Melanie Alnwick reports Republicans believe that because Washington, D.C., is the nation’s capital, they have a right and duty to intervene in city affairs. 

READ MORE: House Republicans pass 2 bills aimed at cracking down on crime in DC

They’ve made their stance clear. This week, the House Oversight Committee passed a series of bills targeting what Republicans call soft-on-crime policies. Four bills quickly passed the full House, including one allowing 14-year-olds to be charged as adults and another authorizing more police vehicle pursuits. 

Mayor Bowser, DC leaders to testify on crime policies

A congressional hearing is putting city leaders in the hot seat Thursday as lawmakers hear testimony on juvenile crime and policing policies in the nation?s capital.

D.C. leaders call the legislation the most aggressive attack on the District’s home rule in decades. Mayor Muriel Bowser, Council Chairman Phil Mendelson and D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb plan to defend the city’s progress since a spike in crime in 2023. 

That includes laws increasing pretrial detention and establishing drug-free zones and juvenile curfew areas. 

Violent crime in the city is currently down 28% compared to this time last year. 

The National Guard mission in D.C. has been extended through at least Nov. 30, with more than 2,300 troops deployed — most from out of state.