Data Shows Crime in Washington DC Not "Out of Control" as Trump Claims

President Donald Trump announced he would deploy hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington DC and asserted federal control over the city’s police department to combat crime.

At a press conference, Trump declared a "Day of Liberation" for the capital and vowed to "rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, chaos, misery, and worse."

However, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser countered that the city has "seen a tremendous decline in crime" and is currently at "the lowest violent crime rate in 30 years."

BBC Verify examines crime statistics in the capital and how they compare to other US cities.

Has Violent Crime Increased in Washington DC?

Trump’s executive order declaring "a criminal emergency in the District of Columbia" cites "rising violence in the capital." During his press conference, he repeatedly claimed crime was "out of control."

Yet according to crime data from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPDC), violent crime peaked in 2023 before dropping to a 30-year low in 2024. Preliminary 2025 figures show a continued decline.

Overall violent crime is down 26% this year compared to the same period in 2024, with robberies falling 28%, per MPDC reports.

Trump and the DC police union have questioned the accuracy of the city’s crime statistics.

Discrepancies exist between MPDC and FBI crime reporting methods. While MPDC data showed a 35% drop in violent crime for 2024, FBI figures indicated only a 9% decrease.

Despite the variance, both sources agree crime is declining in DC.

The downward trend is "unequivocal and broad," said Adam Gelb, CEO of the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ), a nonpartisan research group.

"The numbers vary depending on the time frame and crime categories examined," Gelb noted, "but there has been a clear and significant drop in violence since summer 2023, when homicides, gun assaults, robberies, and car thefts peaked."

What About Murder Rates?

Trump claimed "2023 murders hit the highest rate there’s probably ever been" in DC, adding the numbers "only go back 25 years."

When asked for sources, the White House cited FBI data.

DC’s homicide rate did surge in 2023 to around 40 per 100,000 residents, the highest in two decades. However, this remains below 1990s and early 2000s levels.

MPDC data shows murders dropped in 2024 and have fallen another 12% year-to-date in 2025.

Studies suggest DC’s murder rate remains above average compared to other major US cities.

As of August 11, 99 homicides had been recorded in 2025, including the fatal shooting of a 21-year-old congressional intern in crossfire, which Trump referenced.

Are Car Thefts Rising?

The president also mentioned a 19-year-old former Department of Government Efficiency (DoGE) employee injured in an alleged carjacking attempt this August.

Trump asserted "car thefts have more than tripled" over five years.

So far in 2025, MPDC has recorded 189 vehicle thefts, down from 300 during the same period last year.

According to CCJ, car thefts spiked post-2020, peaking at 140 monthly incidents in June 2023.

Since July 2025, a citywide curfew for minors under 17 (11 PM to 6 AM) has been in effect to address summer crime surges, including juvenile-involved carjackings.

How Does DC Compare to Other US Cities?

"Violence in the District remains mostly higher than the average across three dozen cities in our sample," the CCJ expert told BBC, "though its downward trend aligns with what we’re seeing in other major cities nationwide."

CCJ tracks crime across 30 major US cities. Their analysis shows DC’s homicide rate fell 19% in the first half of 2025 (January-June) compared to 2024, slightly above the study’s 17% average decline.

However, when comparing early 2025 to pre-pandemic 2019, DC murders dropped just 3%, versus a 14% average decrease across benchmark cities.