Report: D.C. Officers Accuse Superiors of Downplaying Violent Crime Stats
The House Oversight Committee and DOJ have ongoing investigations into these allegations.
The Washington Post reported that dozens of D.C. police officers are eager to help Congress investigate whether the superiors have been downplaying violent crime stats.
The voluntary cooperation of about three dozen from the police force, according to three of the people, reflects long-standing frustrations about how violent crime is categorized by supervisors — and surfaces as public safety in D.C. continues to capture the president’s attention.
Some rank-and-file officers and detectives have complained for months — in some cases, years — that managers were recording serious crimes as more minor ones to make their police districts appear safer or avoid the ire of top department brass. Some kept lists, documenting cases where they believed a higher-up improperly classified a crime as a lesser offense. One such tally, obtained by The Washington Post, lists more than 150 instances since March 2024 where staff in a Southeast D.C. police district believed offenses were, at least initially, inappropriately classified.
The House Oversight Committee launched an investigation into these allegations in August because of whistleblowers.
“The whistleblower stated this manipulation is accomplished by supervisors—with only a cursory understanding of the facts and circumstances of the crime—ignoring the judgement of patrol officers who actually interviewed witnesses and collected evidence by recommending reduced charges. On August 11, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled, ‘Restoring Law and Order in the District of Columbia,’ to combat the city’s crime crisis,” stated Oversight Chairman James Comer at the time. “This Executive Order is a direct response to a lack of faith in city leadership to put an end to high levels of violent crime. All those living, working, and visiting our nation’s capital deserve a safe city, and misleading the public through manipulation of crime statistics could further erode faith in city leadership and law enforcement in general. As the Committee of jurisdiction over the municipal affairs of the District of Columbia, it is imperative that the Committee determine whether legislation is needed to ensure that city law enforcement are enabled to perform their duties without pressure to manipulate data for the benefit of superiors.”
It would not shock me if the claims are true. I’m pretty sure every city downplays their crime stats.
The DOJ also launched an investigation around the same time.
I bet the D.C. bosses have gone overboard to get President Donald Trump off their back.
I also wonder how high the conspiracy goes.
However, criminologists have attempted to explain away the process:
Criminologists say classifying crimes is an often subjective and evolving process: Incidents can be redefined as investigators uncover more evidence, and disagreements don’t necessarily point to corruption. In D.C., officers and supervisors have clashed over details such as whether an offense was a robbery or a theft, or whether a weapon used in an assault qualified as potentially deadly.
Some in the police force say these arguments are part of a pattern of manipulation by supervisors to achieve a long-term appearance of violent crime reduction. At first, the notes kept by officers were “not a politically motivated thing” and were instead an effort to prove what some officers saw as a persisting problem, one former detective said. Now, with separate investigations underway at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for D.C. and the House congressional committee that oversees the District, the long-standing concerns have found a receptive audience.
“The police department is playing fast and loose with how they report their data so that they can report favorably to the citizens about crime, and I don’t think it’s fair to the city,” said D.C. Police Union Chairman Greggory Pemberton. “I don’t think it’s fair to the police department. And it’s certainly not fair to the victims.”
[Featured image via YouTube]
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Comments
Murder = unexplained sudden death
Rape = Non-consensual interaction
Armed Robbery = Misdemeanor theft while exercising 2nd Amendment rights
You get the picture.
Democrats are the domestic enemies our forefathers warned us of.
This has already been established and not just in DC.
NYC is probably the worst when it comes to providing accurate crime stats
No surprise there.
This is why reporting crimes via telephone or on-line is popular with the politicians. The average citizen is not familiar with the laws to the point that “fine points” of the law are often not addressed in their initial report or are miscategorized. Because they did not use the proper “magic words” (police jargon there) the opening is there to down grade the offense. Sometimes this is for looking good in the stats or for adapting the workload in an under staffed department. Or, of course, both. And the street cops don’t know the offense occurred at all, so no whistleblowers.
The answer is obvious! Do to serious crimes what Biden did to Covid cases. When a crime reaches a certain level, the police department gets paid like the hospitals and doctors were paid for Covid reports. Remember the man in Miami who died in a motorcycle accident who had Covid in his system? It was recorded as a Covid death a d the doctor got paid.
Behold my shocked face.
thank god some are willing to call out these communistnazi loving thugs
but dont worry
2020 election was not rigged
Securest election ever! The mostest! Security level Eleventy!
This was decided a while ago. The city already has a settlement over the issue,
Whatever happened to that vaunted blue loyalty (omerta) within the ranks?
I bet a lot of these people are angling for the bosses’ jobs. They hear that headsman a’ comin’.
The fox counts the chickens.
What could go wrong?