The outgoing U.S. Attorney for D.C. had some parting critiques about how D.C.’s leaders and courts have handled crime in the city.
Ed Martin faced reporters on Tuesday in what was likely his final interview before leaving office. He commended local law enforcement’s partnership with immigration officials and the cooperation from Police Chief Pamela Smith and Mayor Muriel Bowser.
“I’m proud of what we’ve done to make D.C. safe again, and what we’ve done in this office,” he said.
However, Martin was critical of the city’s court system.
“Far too many bad guys are being … released by our courts,” Martin said, citing the cases of two men who were allegedly pushing fentanyl and in possession of illegal machine guns. “This is a problem, and we have to address it.”
Martin, the former head of the Missouri Republican Party, was appointed by President Donald Trump in January, who signed an executive order in March to establish a task force made up of members from federal departments and agencies, focusing mostly on addressing crime and immigration.
“We have a give-and-take,” Martin said of Bowser. “She’s got to be the mayor; but as much as we can listen to what’s needed for the cops and for the community, we’ve been able to do.”
Martin was also critical of the D.C. Council.
“The D.C. local leadership, the council and others, has made the District a sanctuary city,” Martin said. “That needs to change, and it needs to change right now for the citizens of D.C., more than anyone.”
The term “sanctuary city” has no single definition, but generally refers to local governments that instruct their employees not to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Bowser has instructed local law enforcement not to participate in ICE operations, however, she has publicly distanced herself from that status ever since Trump was elected to a second term.
“So we have to have ICE agents sitting outside the jails waiting to get them, endangering themselves, endangering the illegals,” Martin said. “That’s because of lawlessness.”
Martin’s comments came on the same day that he released a joint statement with other law enforcement officials, announcing that 189 individuals were apprehended this month during an “enhanced targeted immigration enforcement operation focused on egregious criminal alien offenders” in the D.C. region.
“Throughout this enhanced enforcement operation, we targeted the most dangerous alien offenders in some of the most crime-infested neighborhoods in the city of Washington, D.C. Evil is powerless if the good are unafraid,” the statement read.
President Trump pulled Martin’s nomination for U.S. Attorney after vocal opposition from Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who was critical of Martin’s involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection. Trump has since nominated Fox News host and judge Jeanine Pirro.
“I have loved my job as D.C.’s U.S. Attorney, Martin said. “But I’m really going to love how judge Jeanine Pirro takes up this mission.”
Martin will be the Justice Department’s new pardon attorney and an associate deputy attorney general.
“Ultimately, the president decided we didn’t want to keep going forward,” he said. “The president of the United States said we have other battles to do, and so I’m excited about that.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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