DC attorney general sues to block police takeover
Justice correspondent David Spunt joins ‘America’s Newsroom’ to discuss the Washington, D.C. Attorney General’s effort to block President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of local police. ‘Fox News Sunday’ anchor Shannon Bream also weighs in.
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The nation’s capital reached an agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration after suing over federal authorities’ takeover of the city’s police force.
The decision came on Friday afternoon, hours after the Trump administration named DEA chief Terry Cole as the new emergency head of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Ultimately, both sides agreed to block Cole from assuming the role, while effectively returning the department to Police Chief Pamela Smith. Cole is now required to go through Mayor Murial Bowser before directing the MPD.
DC SUES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OVER ‘UNLAWFUL’ FEDERAL TAKEOVER
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, on Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, in Washington as from left, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel, look on. (AP/Alex Brandon)
Under the agreement, the Trump administration retains control of the police force.
“In my nearly three decades in law enforcement, I have never seen a single government action that would cause a greater threat to law and order than this dangerous directive,” Smith said in a court filing.
The courtroom showdown was sparked by Trump’s deployment of federal authorities within Washington D.C., with the city ultimately asking for a temporary restraining order blocking an executive order aimed at taking over the local police force.
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U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) conduct a traffic stop near the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC. on August 14, 2025. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
Yaakov Roth, an attorney for the Trump administration, argued in court that the decision to remove Smith from her post was a result of an immigration order that neglected to provide financial aid to federal authorities, while claiming the ability to determine what type of help the MPD must provide is within presidential authority.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, a Biden appointee, previously indicated the law does not allow Trump to broadly take over the city’s police force, but conceded it could grant him more power than the city would like.
“The way I read the statute, the president can ask, the mayor must provide, but the president can’t control,” Reyes said.
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U.S. military members walk near the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., August 14, 2025. (REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez)
However, District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb wrote in court filings that the move threatens to “wreak operational havoc,” while arguing the president’s power is limited to mandating that the mayor utilize the police force for federal purposes.
Schwalb and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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Trump is the first president to utilize control over the capital’s police department since the Home Rule Act was signed in 1973, granting the city the ability to elect its own city council and mayor. The law limits a president’s control to 30 days without congressional approval, which Trump has indicated he will seek to extend.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.