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1h ago

Bondi Appoints DEA Head as Emergency D.C. Police Commissioner, Scraps Sanctuary Restrictions

Local police authority is under federal emergency powers for up to 30 days subject to congressional or judicial review

Members of the National Guard can be seen arriving at the Guard’s headquarters at the D.C. Armory on August 12, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
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Drug Enforcement Agency Administrator Terrance Cole listens as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee budget hearing on Capitol Hill, Monday, June 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

Overview

  • Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a directive naming DEA Administrator Terrence C. Cole as Washington’s emergency police commissioner with full powers of the Metropolitan Police Department chief.
  • Bondi’s order rescinded multiple MPD policies that had limited cooperation with federal immigration agencies and barred arrests based solely on civil immigration warrants.
  • The directive requires existing MPD leadership to obtain approval from the emergency commissioner before issuing any new orders, shifting local command to a federal appointee.
  • About 800 National Guard members and hundreds of federal agents from agencies including the DEA, FBI, ICE and CBP remain deployed in high-traffic areas across the city.
  • D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb and city officials have declared the Bondi order unlawful and plan court and congressional challenges before the 30-day emergency period ends.