WASHINGTON — Republican members of the House of Representatives criticized a "soft" on crime approach during a Thursday hearing focused on the District's rise in violent crime.
The hearing held by the Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance was held just days after Rep. Henry Cuellar fell victim to an armed carjacking outside his Navy Yards apartment and at a time when the District is grappling with over 215 homicides this year.
"The crime we are seeing just a few blocks from this building is unprecedented," said Rep. Andy Briggs (R-Arizona) who chairs the subcommittee.
House Republicans accused the D.C. council of attempting to "defund the police" while Democrats called the hearing a political stunt.
During his opening statements, Briggs placed blame on the U.S. Attorney for D.C.’s prosecutorial failures. "The man who is in charge of prosecuting the criminals has abandoned his responsibilities, that's Matthew Graves," Briggs added.
Speakers, including Briggs, made reference to a report published in March that indicates that the U.S. Attorney's Office of the District of Columbia declined to prosecute 67% of arrests made by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Three victims of violent crimes who shared their testimonies echoed their concerns about the current state of the judicial system in the District.
"Both of the females jumped over the banister into the landing and began to punch and kick me while pulling my hair," DC Fire and EMS responder Miyasha Richards said as she shared the details about being attacked while responding to an emergency call. Richards questioned what she considered to be a lenient punishment for only one of her attackers.
"I don't know what this committee can do, to be honest. I think this is a D.C. problem," business owner Gaynor Jablonski told reporters at the conclusion of the hearing. He shared a video of an alleged attack involving an armed Door Dash driver inside his pub. Jablonski's four-year-old son is seen in the surveillance video witnessing the entire incident. "At the end of the day it comes down to the Mayor, the Council, and D.A.," he added.
In a statement to WUSA9, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew M. Graves said:
“Our goal is to get justice for victims. That’s why we are on pace to charge 6,000 cases this year alone and have had nearly 200,000 communications with victims year-to-date about their cases. We will continue to do all we can under D.C.’s criminal justice system to get the best outcome possible for victims."
Mayor Muriel Bowser also responded to the claims being made by GOP members telling WUSA9's Delia Goncalves, "To the extent that they have legitimate questions we are happy to answer them. We won't play in the politics game."
The Chairman of the D.C. Council Phil Mendelson responded to criticisms about the "soft on crime" rhetoric and policies by saying, “This Council has been supportive of the Metropolitan Police Department and efforts to hire and retain more police, as well as changes to our laws that would assist law enforcement in holding offenders accountable. This Council has also passed emergency public safety legislation and are actively working on legislation to address additional concerns about public safety in the District."
Mendelson expressed approval for the focus on the U.S. Attorney and what he called "the inefficiencies" of the judicial justice system.
"Republicans are truly concerned with crime in the District, I look forward to working with GOP members of the Committee to fully support these agencies’ funding and resource requests," he added.
Lawmakers called on several witnesses including Gregg Pemberton, the head of the D.C. Police Union, Lindsey Appiah, Deputy Mayor of Public Safety, Charles Stimson, an expert at the Heritage Foundation, and Thomas Abt, the founding director of the Center for the Study and Practice of Violence Reduction at the University of Maryland.
Both Stimson and Abt urged the members of Congress to support the embattled D.C. crime lab that lost accreditation over two years ago.
Stimson also urged Congress to strip juvenile crime cases from the Office of the Attorney General and hand them over to the U.S. Attorney for D.C.
The District's Deputy Mayor of Public Safety pushed back on the recommendation.
"We don't support anything that takes away more control from the District, that's the first thing, I'd say. We are not looking for more federal control," Appiah said.