DEA head appointed emergency Washington, D.C. police chief

Drug Enforcement Administration head Terence Cole will serve as emergency commissioner of Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi ordered Thursday evening. Cole assumed the powers and duties of Washington, D.C., police chief Pamela Smith, who needed approval from Cole for any directives to police, according to Bondi’s order. Cole would hold the position during the duration of President Donald Trump’s declaration of a crime emergency in Washington, according to Bondi’s order. Cole met with leadership at police headquarters on Thursday, according to the DEA.

Bondi also rescinded the police department’s Aug. 14 order preventing arrests solely for federal immigration warrants. Sanctuary city policies endangered citizens and tourists, she said. The nixed departmental order had also limited information sharing with the federal government. Bondi directed the police department to strongly enforce laws against obstruction of streets and public spaces.

How did local officials respond? Mayor Muriel Bowser and Washington, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb both said Bondi didn’t have the authority to change district personnel.

They argued that the section of the Home Rule Act cited by Trump and Bondi doesn’t give the federal government the ability to alter the chain of command. However, the section does require city officials to provide the services of the Metropolitan Police Department to the president at his request, they said.

What other moves did Bondi make against sanctuary city policies? The Justice Department delivered letters ordering states, cities, and counties to end sanctuary policies for illegal immigrants, she said Thursday. Officials who use their positions to obstruct federal immigration enforcement work could face criminal charges, she said in a letter addressed to California Gov. Gavin Newsom that she posted online. Federal agencies may also add immigration-related conditions to funding, grants, and contracts, she said. Washington, D.C., is on the government’s list of sanctuary jurisdictions.

Dig deeper: Read Lauren Canterberry’s report on the National Guard’s arrival in D.C. earlier this week to assist in a crime crackdown.