D.C. Sues Trump Over National Guard Deployment, Alleging Illegal Federal Takeover
The District of Columbia has filed a sweeping lawsuit against President Donald J. Trump, the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, and other federal officials, charging that the administration’s deployment of thousands of National Guard troops to patrol city streets is unlawful and threatens the core principle of local self-government.
In a 52-page complaint filed Thursday in U.S. District Court, D.C. Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb alleged that more than 2,200 troops from seven states and the District have been dispatched without the consent of Mayor Muriel Bowser. Armed soldiers in fatigues have been conducting “presence patrols,” making detentions, and riding armored vehicles through neighborhoods in what the city calls an illegal military occupation.
“The residents and leaders of the District of Columbia have not requested any of this,” the complaint states. It accuses Trump of seeking to “federalize” the capital, which he has publicly called “a filthy and crime-ridden embarrassment,” and argues the actions trample the Home Rule Act, the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, and the Posse Comitatus Act.
According to the filing, Trump’s Aug. 11 press conference and subsequent executive orders directed Defense Secretary Peter Hegseth and Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll to mobilize Guard units, place them under federal command, and deputize them as U.S. Marshals. The District contends this structure unlawfully strips governors of their constitutional control over their own state militias.
The suit notes that Bowser has repeatedly rejected the deployments, calling them “unsettling and unprecedented.” She wrote on social media that “American soldiers and airmen policing American citizens on American soil is #UnAmerican.”
However, Bowser has since come out to voice support for what has come from Trump’s militarization of D.C., saying “neighborhoods feel safer and are safer, so this surge has been important to us.”
However, Schwalb emphasized the dangers in the federal takeover of D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department and the city overall.
“Deploying the National Guard to engage in law enforcement is not only unnecessary and unwanted, but it is also dangerous and harmful to the District and its residents,” Schwalb stated. “No American city should have the U.S. military, particularly out-of-state military who are not accountable to the residents and untrained in local law enforcement, policing its streets,” Schwalb continued. “It’s D.C. today but could be any other city tomorrow. We’ve filed this action to put an end to this illegal federal overreach.”
The complaint details incidents in which National Guard troops armed with M17 pistols and M4 rifles patrolled Metro stations, residential neighborhoods, and even routine local events. It cites an Aug. 20 crash in which a Guard-operated armored vehicle slammed into a civilian SUV, injuring the driver.
“These are vehicles designed for warfare,” D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen said. “They have no business on our city streets.”
The District argues the militarization has already harmed the local economy, with tourism, restaurants, and hotels reporting sharp drops in business since the deployment began. It also claims that the federal orders unlawfully suspend local gun laws by permitting Guardsmen to carry weapons that would otherwise be prohibited in the city.
In its request for relief, the lawsuit asks the court to declare Trump’s actions unconstitutional, vacate the federal orders, and permanently bar the administration from continuing the military presence in the District.
“No American jurisdiction should be involuntarily subjected to military occupation,” the filing states. “The danger that such an operation poses to individual liberty and democratic rule is self-evident.”
Stacy M. Brown is a senior writer for The Washington Informer and the senior national correspondent for the Black Press of America. Stacy has more than 25 years of journalism experience and has authored two major biographies, including "Blind Faith: The Miraculous Journey of Lula Hardaway, Stevie Wonder's Mother."
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