Attorney General Pam Bondi has moved decisively to dismantle Washington, D.C.’s “sanctuary city” protections and tighten federal control over the city’s police force.
D.C. is under federal control as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping crime emergency order for the nation’s capital.
Bondi issued a two-page directive titled “Restoring Safety and Security to the District of Columbia,” nullifying Metro Police policies that limited cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
The order explicitly rescinds three separate MPD directives from the past two years that had shielded illegal immigrants from arrest and curtailed officers’ ability to inquire about immigration status.
In a direct shake-up of D.C. police leadership, Bondi stripped authority from MPD Chief Pamela Smith.
Instead, Bondi appointed Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole as the department’s “emergency police commissioner.”
Cole is now vested with all powers and duties of the position, with existing department leadership required to seek his approval before issuing any new directives.
He has the authority to enact general orders, executive orders, and operational directives affecting all members of the force.
Bondi’s order came just hours after Chief Smith issued a watered-down policy allowing limited cooperation with ICE, such as sharing information on individuals not in custody and transporting detained subjects.
However, the policy still forbids immigration status checks and arrests based solely on federal immigration warrants.
Bondi rescinded that policy the same day, along with a June 2024 directive restricting immigration inquiries and an October 2023 directive prohibiting arrests for federal immigration detainers alone.
The move has effectively stripped Washington, D.C. of its so-called “sanctuary” status.
Making clear that federal directives now supersede local sanctuary policies, Bondi wrote:
“To the extent that provisions in this order conflict with any existing MPD directives, those directives are hereby rescinded.”
The move follows President Trump’s Monday executive order declaring a crime emergency in Washington, D.C., and announcing a federal takeover of the MPD.
Since the order took effect, federal law enforcement and National Guard units have been deployed throughout the city.
On Wednesday night alone, coordinated operations netted 45 arrests, underscoring the administration’s aggressive enforcement posture.
29 of those arrested were illegal aliens.
“Residents of the District of Columbia, the thousands of Americans who commute into the District for work every day, and the millions of tourists from all over the world who visit our nation’s capital have a right to feel safe and to be free from the scourge of violent crime,” Bondi stated in her order.
The crackdown marks one of the most aggressive federal interventions in D.C. policing in modern history.
It delivers a direct blow to the city’s long-standing sanctuary status and sends a clear message that the Trump administration is prioritizing law and order over progressive immigration policies.
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