President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that his administration intends to pursue the death penalty for individuals convicted of committing murder in the nation’s capital.
The president revealed the plan during a White House Cabinet Meeting, explaining that the policy would apply specifically to homicide cases in Washington, D.C. “If somebody kills somebody in the capital, Washington, DC, we’re going to be seeking the death penalty. And that’s a very strong preventative, and everybody that’s heard it agrees with it,” he said. “I don’t know if we’re ready for it in this country, but we… have no choice.”
Trump clarified that while his administration will enforce this policy in D.C., each state will ultimately need to make its own decisions regarding the issue.
His remarks came as D.C. recently experienced a 12-day stretch without any homicides, a period that followed Trump’s decision to federalize law enforcement in the capital. That streak appeared to end Tuesday morning when a man was killed in what authorities believe was a shooting, according to The Hill.
Since the federal intervention began on August 11, Trump’s crackdown on violent crime in Washington, D.C., has resulted in striking outcomes. In the 11 days following his order to take control of local law enforcement, from August 11 to August 22, carjackings fell by 83% compared to the 11 days prior, from July 31 to August 11.
During that same time frame, motor vehicle thefts dropped by 37%, robberies decreased by more than 50%, homicides fell by 50%, assaults involving dangerous weapons declined by 32%, and overall crime in the city went down by 14%.
Trump also stated on Friday that his administration is evaluating similar federal crackdowns in other cities facing high crime rates, including Chicago. “And after we do this, we’ll go to another location, and we’ll make it safe also. We’re going to make our country very safe. We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” Trump said. “Chicago is a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent.”
He added, “We’ll straighten that one out, probably next. That’ll be our next one after this, and it won’t even be tough. And the people in Chicago, Mr. Vice President, are screaming for us to come. They’re wearing red hats just like this one.”
{Matzav.com}
