White House “border czar” Tom Homan clarified Friday that local law enforcement officers in the District of Columbia are not expected to perform Immigration and Customs Enforcement duties during the Trump administration’s temporary federalization of the Metropolitan Police Department.
As the Trump administration faces a lawsuit from the district for taking over the MPD, Homan this week sought to provide assurances that “we’re not asking Metro PD to be immigration officers,” making a distinction between cooperation and direct involvement.
“But when you’re enforcing criminal law and when you find an illegal alien not only in violation of immigration law here illegally but involved with criminal activity, they absolutely should call us,” he said during a NewsNation interview. “Law enforcement needs to work with law enforcement.”
President Donald Trump sidelined the district’s home rule earlier this week to target crime.
Mayor Muriel Bowser and MPD Chief Pamela Smith were initially largely agreeable about the development, with the MPD chief saying that since her department is short almost 800 officers, the extra presence of National Guard members and other federal law enforcement personnel in the city “is clearly going to impact us in a positive way.”
On Wednesday night alone, numerous agencies arrested 45 people, including 29 illegal immigrants, as part of the crime crackdown. The operation came after over 1,400 federal and local officers spread out Tuesday night to make 43 arrests, including carrying out a warrant for assault with a deadly weapon, and making detentions for driving under the influence, unlawful entry, and resisting arrests, according to the White House. Seven illegal guns were also seized.
Smith issued an executive order on Thursday saying local officers could cooperate with ICE and other federal officers on certain matters related to immigration enforcement. However, her order also limited coordination on other matters, including prohibiting officers from making arrests based solely on an ICE warrant.
Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday addressed aspects of Smith’s order restricting cooperation with ICE, and expanded the district’s overall ability to cooperate with the agency. Bondi also instituted a new “emergency police commissioner” to take on all the duties of the police chief, leading the district to mount a lawsuit against the Trump administration on Friday, alleging that the White House lacked a legal basis for such an action.
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Homan argued that policies enacted this week by the White House are about reducing crime in Washington.
“It’s not just the people that are arresting that are making D.C. safer, it’s the message we’re sending that we’re out here in force,” he said Friday. “I think there are a lot of criminals staying off the street because they know the city is overwhelmed with law enforcement.”