The District of Columbia has taken the Trump administration to court over what city officials call an unlawful and unprecedented federal power grab — the president’s attempt to wrest control of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) from local leaders.
Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb’s lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, directly challenges President Donald Trump’s Aug. 11 executive order and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Aug. 14 directive, which invoke a never-before-used section of the 1973 Home Rule Act. The administration claims the provision allows federal command of MPD, but the city says the law is clear — the president can only request the police department’s help temporarily, in an emergency, and strictly for federal purposes.
“By declaring a hostile takeover of MPD, the administration is abusing its limited, temporary authority under the Home Rule Act, infringing on the District’s right to self-governance and putting the safety of DC residents and visitors at risk,” Schwalb said. “The administration’s unlawful actions are an affront to the dignity and autonomy of the 700,000 Americans who call D.C. home. This is the gravest threat to Home Rule that the District has ever faced, and we are fighting to stop it.”
The lawsuit names Trump, Bondi, the Justice Department, Drug Enforcement Administration chief Terrance Cole and U.S. Marshals Service Director Gady Serralta as defendants.
It seeks to block Bondi’s order installing Cole as “Emergency Police Commissioner” with the powers of police chief — currently under the leadership of Chief Pamela A. Smith — rescinding long-standing department policies, and directing MPD to enforce local ordinances on homelessness and public space occupancy — measures far outside the scope of federal authority.
The Home Rule Act leaves MPD under the mayor and chief of police, and its Section 740 authority has never been invoked in the District’s 52 years of self-governance. Even when used, it limits any presidential request to 30 days and only for defined federal purposes, such as protecting federal buildings or personnel.
The complaint also dismantles the administration’s crime narrative.
While Trump has claimed violent crime is “out of control,” city and federal data show violent crime in D.C. has dropped 26% since last year, down 51% from 2023, and at its lowest levels in decades.
The suit calls the orders a “brazen usurpation” of local control, issued without a valid emergency and in direct violation of the statute’s limits.
The District is asking the court to declare the orders unlawful, block their enforcement, and keep command of MPD where Congress placed it — in the hands of the city’s elected leadership.
Attorney and former Advisory Neighborhood Commission 8C Chair Mike Austin took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to support Schwalb’s announcement of the lawsuit.
“Trump has lost his mind. We tried playing fair but his recklessness left us no choice,” said Austin, who recently lost his campaign bid to represent Ward 8 on the D.C. Council to Trayon White – a leader who has said “Trump is not totally wrong,” about the National Guard’s presence in D.C.
Austin emphasized the importance of combating Trump’s continued takeover efforts.
“We have to bully the bully,” Austin declared. “Stand strong, defend our right and protect Home Rule.”