One year later: Mixed reviews for National Guard deployment in DC

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Tuesday marks exactly one year since President Donald Trump declared a crime emergency in the District of Columbia and deployed National Guard troops to patrol city streets. 

Twelve months into the operation, the troop surge is generating mixed reviews as federal agencies tout massive arrest numbers while policy experts point to a more nuanced reality on the ground.

By the numbers:

Federal law enforcement officials are pointing to significant surges in arrests and prosecutions. The U.S. Marshal’s Service reports that the "Safe and Beautiful Task Force" has led to 16,000 arrests.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for D.C., led by Jeanine Pirro, states that the 16,000-plus cases charged represent a 67% increase in their caseload. According to the Marshals, the task force is "just getting started."

Dig deeper:

While the administration is highlighting year-over-year declines in crime, researchers suggest the National Guard's impact is complex.

The Niskanen Center, a nonpartisan public policy think tank, studied D.C.'s crime rates during its peak in the spring of 2023 compared to the Guard's deployment. They found that the troops produced roughly a 24% reduction in crime, mostly in opportunistic property crimes, such as stealing packages off front stoops.

However, Richard Hahn of the Niskanen Center noted that the National Guard was introduced into an environment where crime rates were already trending downward.

"I know the administration has been pointing to the year-over-year crime decline without clarifying that that crime decline was already happening, and that the Guard came into the middle of an already improving situation," Hahn said. "It acknowledges their point that, in fact, crime is better than it was this time last year... but it contextualizes it in the broader situation in D.C."

Limits of military presence

Local perspective:

The Niskanen Center's report emphasized that the National Guard is not a substitute for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), primarily because the troops do not possess arrest powers. Instead, the sudden, highly visible presence of military personnel created an overnight "shock" that effectively deterred crimes of opportunity.

When it comes to violent crime, however, the report notes that it is "less deterrable by patrol presence alone" and did not see the same impact. According to the MPD, violent crime has seen mixed trends compared to last year: while homicides are down by roughly a third, assaults with a dangerous weapon have increased by over 40%.

Community response

What they're saying:

As the city marks the one-year anniversary, local advocacy groups are speaking out about the toll the operation has taken on vulnerable populations.

The group Free DC has organized 11 events to mark the anniversary of the deployment. In Franklin Park, the organization focused on how the massive influx of arrests has impacted the court system and the city's unhoused population. Free DC is also planning an event tomorrow morning at the site formerly known as Black Lives Matter Plaza.