Republicans move to create mandatory sentences and cash bail in DC
The Trump administration’s takeover of the D.C. police department expires on Wednesday, but Republicans in Congress are taking steps to continue their push to cut crime in the federal district. The House Oversight Committee is working to finalize 14 bills related to crime, safety and governance in Washington, which Republicans say will give D.C. law enforcement more power to prosecute offenders.
“President Trump and House Republicans are committed to restoring law and order in our nation’s capital city,” Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said in a statement. “Under President Trump’s decisive leadership, crime in D.C. is now falling at an unprecedented rate.”
Although the D.C. Home Rule Act allows the mayor and city council to pass some of their own laws and be partially self-governing, Congress has the final say and the power to impose new legislation on the federal district.
D.C. also relies on a U.S. attorney to prosecute crimes within its borders, making it subject to the will of a presidential political appointee.
Trying minors as adults
One bill would lower the age at which a minor can be tried as an adult to 14.
Under current D.C. law, those 16 and older who are charged with the following crimes are not considered a child: murder, first degree sexual abuse, first degree burglary, armed robbery and other serious offenses.
D.C. law also allows children as young as 15 to be tried as adults under certain circumstances if they commit a felony. Sixteen-year-olds can also be tried as adults if they are already delinquent or repeat offenders.
Mandatory detention and cash bail
Another bill would require pretrial and post-conviction detention for violent and dangerous crimes.
There is already a defined listing of violent crimes in the D.C. code, which includes assault, carjacking, certain sex offenses, kidnapping and other offenses.
The legislation would also require mandatory cash bail for certain crimes, including rioting, burglary, stalking, obstruction of justice, destruction of property and certain repeat offenses.
Mandatory minimum sentences
The legislative package also includes a bill to raise the mandatory minimums for certain heinous acts. For instance, first-degree murder would move from a minimum of 30 years to mandatory life without parole.
Sexual abuse convictions would move from no mandatory minimum to a 25-year mandatory minimum, and those convicted of rape who already have a criminal record would also have a mandatory 25-year minimum.
Legislative approval process
The House Oversight Committee will hold a markup for these bills on Wednesday. That’s when the final changes are made before the bills move to the House floor for a vote.
They will likely be approved on a party-line basis in the chamber, but will most likely stall in the Senate, where Democrats would have to support them to reach the necessary 60 votes.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
