President Trump called for laws to change in the District so that teenagers 14 and older who commit crimes can be charged as adults, and he threatened a federal takeover of the city if things don’t change.
In a lengthy social media post Tuesday, the president posted an image of a young White male, bloodied, sitting on the ground.
He said crime in D.C. is “totally out of control.”
“Local ‘youths’ and gang members, some only 14, 15, and 16-years-old, are randomly attacking, mugging, maiming, and shooting innocent Citizens, at the same time that they will almost immediately released,” the president said.
“They are not afraid of Law Enforcement because they know nothing ever happens to them, but it’s going to happen now!” Mr. Trump said. “The Law in D.C. must be changed to prosecute these ‘minors’ as adults, and lock them up for a long time, starting at age 14. The most recent victim was beaten mercilessly by local thugs.”
He said the District “must be safe, clean, and beautiful for all Americans, and importantly, for the World to see.”
“If D.C. doesn’t get its act together, and quickly, we will have no choice but to take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run, and put criminals on notice that they’re not going to get away with it anymore,” the president said.
The Washington Times reached out to Mayor Bowser’s office for comment.
According to data from the Metropolitan Police Department, violent crime is down so far in 2025 compared to other years.
Mr. Trump has floated the idea of the federal takeover of D.C. before. Last month, he said his administration has been “testing” the idea of taking over the city.
“We could run D.C. We’re looking at D.C. We don’t want crime in D.C. We want to run the city well,” he said during a Cabinet meeting.
“We would run it so good, it would be run so proper, we’d get the best person to run it,” Mr. Trump said. “And you know the crime would be down to a minimum, would be much less. And you know, we’re thinking about doing it, to be honest with you.”
He said his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, was working with Ms. Bowser, a Democrat, and that the administration has had a good relationship with her office.
Mr. Trump had repeatedly complained about the city’s crime and collection of homeless encampments, which he has called for to be removed.
