The Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia prosecuted more than half of the local arrests made by Metropolitan Police last fiscal year — its highest number since 2018 and just two years after the office’s high dismissal rate was blamed for helping fuel the city’s generational crime wave.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office took to court 57% of the cases referred by the police department in fiscal 2024, which ended Sept. 30.
The office, which deals with most local crimes charged in the District, prosecuted just over 70% of felony cases and 51% of misdemeanor cases during that period.
The last time the U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted that many cases was in 2018, when attorneys brought 60% of all cases before a judge.
The Washington Times has reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for comment.
The prosecution numbers, which come from the Department of Justice’s Annual Statistical Report for all 94 federal districts, represent a major jump from fiscal 2022, when the office decided not to pursue 67% of the arrests made by D.C. police.
A large part of that was due to the office taking only 28% of all misdemeanor crimes to court between Oct. 1, 2021, and Sept. 30, 2022. Less than half of all felony arrests, or 47%, were also pursued by prosecutors.
The chasm between the cases addressed by the office, and those dropped cases came to light early in 2023, right as the District began barreling toward its most violent year in more than a quarter-century.
The nation’s capital saw 274 killings that year — its most since 1997 — while juvenile-led carjackings terrorized city residents and armed thieves regularly ambushed people on side streets.
Members of Congress were caught up in the crime wave as well, with some being attacked in their apartment buildings while others had their cars stolen at gunpoint.
In May 2023, Capitol Hill lawmakers tore into former U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves over his office’s failure to seek convictions against the suspects arrested by Metropolitan Police.
“You’re not doing your job, and I find it disgusting, frankly,” Rep. Byron Donalds, Florida Republican, told Mr. Graves during a congressional hearing.
The District has experienced a pronounced drop in violent crime since 2023, with the arrival of Police Chief Pamela A. Smith, tougher jailing laws and public pressure all playing a part. The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted 44% of all arrests made during fiscal 2023.
President Trump in March signed an executive order directing authorities to crack down on drug use, Metro fare evasion and other quality of life crimes in an effort to make the nation’s capital “safe and beautiful.”
Interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin instructed prosecutors that same month to bring federal charges against all former felons caught with weapons.
Ex-felons convicted in federal gun possession cases can be sentenced to prison for five to nine years. In Superior Court, critics accused prosecutors of allowing defendants to plead down to less serious charges with little jail time.
Mr. Martin said 35 people have been charged under the initiative since it launched two months ago. He also credited Mr. Trump for a 25% drop in crime in the District during his first 100 days in office.
