President Donald Trump’s takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department came as a result of politicians in Washington, D.C., failing to take control of an increase in youth violence, a law enforcement group said.

President Trump made the decision Monday to federalize the Metropolitan Police Department under the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, allowing the president to take emergency control of police in Washington, D.C., for 30 days.

“Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people,” Trump said Monday while announcing the move. “And we’re not going to let it happen anymore. We’re not going to take it.” 

In explaining why he was federalizing D.C. police, Trump pointed to a rise in criminal activity that included a former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer being beaten and the murder of a congressional intern.

“It is a huge issue,” Smith said of juvenile crime in Washington, D.C. “It’s frustrating for the crime victims to know that if they’re the victim of a juvenile offender, even if the crime is violent, that the offender will likely not be prosecuted commiserate with the law. It is also frustrating for the police officer who makes the arrest and/or investigates the crime to then sees the offender not receive appropriate punishment.”

Smith said D.C. should be encouraged to “lower the age of responsibility,” which would allow “for more effective prosecution of juveniles.”

“There needs to be a substantive change in the way that our criminal justice system deals with juvenile offenders. We need to do a better job of addressing true criminality, and we need to separate it out from a kid who runs away from home or a kid who steals a soda and a bag of chips from the local gas station,” she said.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser met Tuesday with federal officials to discuss how the city will coordinate an increased law enforcement presence in the city.

Members of the National Guard oversee entries at a staging area inside the U.S. Park Police Anacostia Operations Facility Aug. 12, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Craig Hudson For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

“What I’m focused on is the federal surge and how to make the most of the additional officer support that we have,” Bowser said, according to Fox 5. “We have the best in the business in MPD Chief Pamela Smith to lead that effort and to make sure that the men and women who are coming from federal law enforcement are being well-used and that if there’s National Guard here they’re being well-used.”