Taking a charge
Zachary Faria
What is the worst possible news you could get when trying to fix the growing crime problem in Washington?
Would it be the Council of the District of Columbia trying to reduce penalties for violent crimes? Perhaps so. But what about the fact that fewer arrests are resulting in charges than at any time in several years?
Such is the case in the district, where the U.S. attorney’s office declines to prosecute in 67% of arrests. That number was 31% in 2016 and rose to 48% in 2020.
According to the USAO, one reason more cases are being dropped is that “the District’s Department of Forensic Sciences evidence lost its accreditation,” and so “we often cannot secure the drug testing, DNA, and firearms testing we need to successfully prosecute these offenses.”
Now, that seems less than ideal, doesn’t it?
There seems to be no shortage of ways that Washington, D.C., has blundered its way into a crime crisis. Were the consequences not so deadly, these follies would be laughable. You would hope that city leaders would take it upon themselves to start finding solutions.
Maybe they will — right after they try to reduce the penalties for homicide once again.