The D.C. chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union considered taking legal action to stop the federalization of the Metropolitan Police Department until a D.C. court ruled that President Donald Trump’s administration did not have the authority to usurp the authority of D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith.
On Monday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order placing MPD under federal control.
In the days since, hundreds of federal officers have fanned out across the District to combat what the president said was “out of control crime,” despite local and federal statistics suggesting that is not the case.
“From the outset, this blatant political theater of ‘there is an emergency for crime’ was false,” said ACLU D.C. Executive Director Monica Hopkins. “It was just an exercise in abuse of power.”
At issue is whether Trump can change the organizational structure of the police department.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi installed DEA Chief Terry Cole as “emergency police commissioner” of the police department, but Hopkins said they can’t do that, according to the Home Rule charter under which D.C. operates.
“Even under the Home Rule Act, the mayor shall provide MPD as assistance,’ but that does not change the organizational structure of the police chief being in control,” Hopkins told WTOP.
Shaking up the leadership of the department, she said, will be detrimental to the police force.
“That means supervisors could not give orders to their line officers without getting permission from this new commissioner,” Hopkins said.
About whether the ACLU of D.C. will take similar action to the city’s attorney general, Hopkins said to “stand by.”
“We are exploring that at this moment. We believe this is contrary to existing law,” she said.
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