D.C. Council debated a new 90-page crime bill Tuesday that could institute harsher penalties and more police power. Brooke Pinto unveiled the bill earlier this month as a way to deal with the city’s skyrocketing carjacking and homicide rates. But not everyone on the council is as enthusiastic.
What’s in the Bill?
The bill includes over 100 provisions that are drawn from two of Mayor Bowser’s previous bills, bills that Pinto introduced, and a proposal that Councilmember Robert White unveiled last October. They include:
- Upping the penalties for certain gun-related offenses
- Increasing video surveillance and expanding the security camera rebate program
- Loosening restrictions on police car chases
- Lowering the threshold for retail theft arrests
- Allowing police to detain Metro fare evaders
- Reviving D.C.’s 1990s-era “drug free zones”
- Allowing DNA collection from people earlier in the legal process
- And much, much, much more
Police tape. (ablokhin/Getty Images)
What Are The Concerns?
Many councilmembers’ concerns surround the “drug-free zones” policy. White, for instance, says it’s unclear how they will cut down on violent crime and could result in unjust racial profiling. Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie is also concerned about the constitutionality of expanding the DNA collection process. And some are upset that the bill rolls back several police reforms that passed in D.C. in 2020.
Context Is Important
D.C. is on edge about crime, and city government is under pressure to tamp it down, but in a “progressive” way. Washington Post reporter Emily Davies told us, “Everyone talks about this pendulum swinging between being too lenient and too punitive. And my question is: at a time when we have such firepower, research, urgency, and there's so much political will, can we enact change without swinging too far?”
What’s Next?
Now that the bill has passed through the public safety committee, it will go to a first full council vote on Feb. 6. At that point, members can add amendments and make adjustments.
