The D.C. Council on Tuesday passed a massive public safety package that puts the liberal city on a track toward harsher punishments for a range of crimes from illegal gun possession to retail theft, a new direction forged by months of intense outcry from residents and businesses over last year’s historic crime spike.
Lawmakers have stopped short of promising a sea change as a result of the legislation and have frequently debated whether provisions such as expanding felony theft or creating temporary “drug-free zones” will prevent crime. But many argued that the legislation is intended to send a message that D.C. is taking crime seriously.
The legislation would make it easier for judges to order adults and certain juveniles charged with violent offenses detained while they await trial through most of this year; expand the definition of carjacking to make the cases easier to prosecute; create a new felony for “organized retail theft,” aimed at repeat shelf-clearing at stores like CVS and Target; and revives a 1990s-era tool that would allow officers to create temporary drug-free zones after residents demanded attention to drug-related loitering.
Full story: D.C. Council passes public safety overhaul following historic crime spike – The Washington Post
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