Justice Department dispatches more resources to fight violent crime in DC

The Justice Department is sending more resources, including prosecutors, to fight violent crime in Washington, D.C., which has been significantly rising over the past several years. 

The federal agency said Friday that it would detail prosecutors from its Criminal Division to focus on D.C. violent crime cases while the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia would move prosecutors to focus on firearms cases and carjackings.

The Justice Department, which uniquely serves as both the local and the federal prosecutor in D.C., is getting more involved in the capital's crime crackdown as President Joe Biden is running for reelection after Republicans last year attacked crime as a national issue through the lens of D.C., per Axios.

A Gun Violence Analytic Cell, a data analytics tool led by the FBI, will also be deployed by the agency to help identify federal investigations that should be opened into violent crime and carjackings. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Drug Enforcement Administration are also partnering with the FBI to deploy the analytics tool.

"Last year, we saw an encouraging decline in violent crime in many parts of the country, but there is much more work to do — including here in the District of Columbia," Attorney General Merrick Garland said. 

From 2022 to 2023, D.C. saw a 39% increase in violent crime and an 82% increase in motor vehicle theft, Metropolitan Police data shows. 

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