DC police chief manipulated crime stats to make city look better, report claims

Resigning Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith deliberately manipulated Washington, D.C., crime data to appear lower, according to a new report.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s majority staff released an interim report on Sunday as part of its ongoing investigation into allegations that MPD leadership pressured commanders to alter crime stats. The committee launched the probe into the department in August.

‘Chief Smith should resign today.’

After interviewing seven acting MPD commanders and one suspended MPD commander, the committee found that the department’s leadership placed “a higher priority on suppressing public reporting of crime statistics than stopping crime itself.”

The commanders allegedly told lawmakers that “they were not only pressured, but also instructed, to lower crime classifications to lesser intermediate offenses in such a way that those offenses would not be included in the [daily crime report] reported to the public.”

Smith allegedly created a “toxic management culture” that propagated a “culture of fear, intimidation, threats, and retaliation,” the report read.

Lawmakers concluded that the MPD’s crime data remains at risk of manipulation despite Smith’s recent resignation announcement.

RELATED: Whistleblower alleges widespread manipulation of DC crime stats, fueling Oversight Committee probe

James Comer. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

“Every single person who lives, works, or visits the District of Columbia deserves a safe city, yet it’s now clear the American people were deliberately kept in the dark about the true crime rates in our nation’s capital,” stated committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.). “Testimony from experienced and courageous MPD commanders has exposed the truth: Chief Pamela Smith coerced staff to report artificially low crime data and cultivated a culture of fear to achieve her agenda. Chief Smith’s decision to mislead the public by manipulating crime statistics is dangerous and undermines trust in both local leadership and law enforcement.”

“Her planned resignation at the end of the month should not be seen as a voluntary choice, but as an inevitable consequence that should have occurred much earlier. Chief Smith should resign today,” Comer added.

Former Police Commander Michael Pulliam was placed on administrative leave in May and later suspended after he was accused of manipulating crime data. Smith stated at the time that the department was committed to immediately addressing “any irregularity in crime data.”

“Any allegation of this behavior will be dealt with through our internal processes, which will ensure those members are held accountable,” she declared.

RELATED: DC police commander under investigation for allegedly manipulating crime stats

Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

However, Smith announced her resignation last week, effective December 31. While she did not give a reason for her departure, some critics questioned the timing amid the ongoing allegations against her and the department.

These allegations against the department and its leadership emerged amid President Donald Trump’s warning that his administration would take over D.C. if its leaders failed to address the area’s crime crisis.

The MPD did not respond to a request for comment.

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