DC arrests top 1,000 as city marks 12 homicide-free days

Arrests under President Donald Trump’s federal crime crackdown in Washington, D.C., have blown past 1,000 as the nation’s capital marked its 12th consecutive day without a homicide, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced Monday.

Pirro said that on Sunday alone there were 86 arrests and 10 illegal guns seized, bringing the totals to 1,007 arrests and 111 guns taken off the streets.

“What does that mean? They can’t be used to shoot people, to kill people,” Pirro said Monday on “Fox & Friends,” referring to the weapons seizures. “And on top of all of that, we’ve got a government now where the people in D.C. are feeling safer. They know that there is a president who’s looking to protect them.”

SOME NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS ARE NOW ARMED IN WASHINGTON, DC

Pirro credited President Donald Trump’s deployment of federal agencies with reshaping public safety in the capital.

“D.C. was one of the most violent cities in the world, and but for President Trump coming in and bringing in our federal partners … we’ve got a unified force of people and law enforcement who were going into the crime-ridden areas and making a difference,” she said.

“And I’ll tell you why it’s making a difference. Today is the 12th day without a homicide in Washington, D.C. So far this year, we’ve had 101 homicides. But for the last 12 days, nothing. Yep. Policing works.”

FBI Director Kash Patel said 26 of Sunday’s arrests came from FBI operations, including five drug seizures.

“Keep getting after it,” Patel posted on X.

Pirro also took aim at Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, a Democrat, who claimed that only nine arrests had been made under the federal crackdown.

Johnson said he would push back against reports that Trump is considering deploying the same type of operation in Chicago, calling the Trump administration’s efforts “uncoordinated, uncalled-for and unsound.”

Pirro, however, said the rollout in Washington was working and serving as a deterrent for criminals.

HUNDREDS ARRESTED AS TRUMP’S WASHINGTON, DC, CRIME CRACKDOWN HITS FULL STRIDE

“The good news is that they’re afraid to commit crimes when you have an increased law enforcement people in the community, especially the crime-ridden community, they’re saying thank you,” Pirro said.  “They’re afraid to commit crimes because they know that being accountable –  Johnson ought to hope that the president comes there to clean up the mess in Chicago.”

Chicago, home to about 2.7 million people, has topped the nation in homicides for 13 straight years, logging 573 in 2024 alone, according to the city’s own figures.

Trump on Monday signed an executive order targeting Washington, D.C. that instructs police to charge suspects with federal crimes and hold them in federal custody to avoid cashless bail.

The president also signed an executive order that seeks to end cashless bail by threatening to revoke federal funding from jurisdictions that use it.

The updated D.C. crime statistics come as National Guard units deployed in Washington, D.C., have been authorized to carry firearms, the D.C. National Guard said— and some troops have already been observed armed on patrol.

Trump activated the National Guard in Washington, D.C., earlier this month as part of an effort to curb violent crime, sweeping up gang members, robbery suspects and immigration violators.

The operation began quietly Aug. 7 with the launch of the “Making D.C. Safe and Beautiful” task force that Trump created in March through an executive order. 

The president escalated it on Aug. 11 by temporarily seizing federal control of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) under emergency powers in the Home Rule Act, the first such move in U.S. history.

Along with the National Guard and FBI, the crackdown has brought in a wide range of federal agencies — including the U.S. Marshals, ATF, DEA, Capitol Police and Park Police — to work alongside local officers in crime-ridden neighborhoods.

Fox News’ Amanda Macias and Reuters contributed to this report.