Overview

• President Trump announced a federal takeover of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and deployed the National Guard to clear homeless encampments on federal and public land
• Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said people living in encampments will be offered shelters or mental health and addiction services, with fines or jail time for those who refuse
• Advocacy organizations including the ACLU and Baltic Street have launched legal and policy challenges, warning the order criminalizes homelessness and severs ties to support networks
• Mayor Muriel Bowser and local service providers have criticized the executive order’s lack of detail on where displaced individuals will be moved, how they will be transported and who will fund the effort
• Some psychiatrists and commentators have praised the potential to mobilize treatment for severely mentally ill individuals, while studies show forced encampment sweeps often undermine long-term housing solutions