It’s not often we get the chance to praise the actions of DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, so when the opportunity comes along, we should take it. Such a rare incident took place earlier this month when the Mayor vetoed a new rewrite of the city’s criminal code. Bowser pointed out that the new rules were entirely soft-on-crime, eliminating nearly all mandatory minimum sentences, offering early release from prison for most crimes, and lower sentences for violent crimes committed by juveniles. She spoke out strongly against the changes, citing recent rising crime rates involving both assaults and property crimes. Unfortunately, her efforts to try to reestablish law and order in the Capital were for naught. The City Council voted 12-1 yesterday to override her veto and put the new criminal code into effect. (Washington Times)

The D.C. Council voted Tuesday to override Mayor Muriel Bowser’s veto of a major rewrite of the city’s criminal code.

The 12-1 vote means the legislation will now go before Congress, which has the final say on all of the District’s proposed laws. The only dissenting member was Ward 8 representative Trayon White.

Ms. Bowser had vetoed the bill, saying it was soft on crime because, among other things, it offers criminals early release from prison and removes most mandatory minimum sentences.

The DC Police union hates the new code because it will create even more of a revolving door at the jails. The prosecutors hate it because it includes a provision allowing anyone charged with a misdemeanor the right to demand a jury trial, likely overwhelming the city’s already backlogged calendar of cases. (And a lot more crimes would be classified as misdemeanors under the new code.) Recent surveys show that a majority of DC’s residents do not like the new code because they have obviously noticed all of the crime taking place.

And yet the City Council voted almost unanimously to put it in place anyway. This is a bizarre effect that we’ve seen cropping up in many cities and discussed here previously. When Democrats in urban centers keep electing the same stable of liberals while complaining about the things these elected officials do, nothing ever changes. It’s a classic case of Einstein’s Parable of Quantum Insanity.

There is at least one bit of potentially good news on the horizon, however. The DC City Council doesn’t have the last word in this matter. The proposal has to be approved by Congress, as with all new laws passed in the District. Historically, Congress has tended to apply a light touch to most of the laws the District approves, but that may not be the case here. The new House GOP Majority came riding into office with a promise to start cracking down on crime. If Kevin McCarthy can herd all of the Republican cats into the corral and shoot this down, the existing criminal code may survive to fight another day.

They shouldn’t have a hard time making that case in the lower chamber. While the city saw a slight drop in homicides in 2022 over the previous year, there were still more than 200 killings. Compare that to only six years earlier in 2016 when there were 135. Carjackings similarly skyrocketed from 148 in 2018 to a staggering 485 last year. The District of Columbia is simply not a safe place to live and work anymore. It’s looking more and more like a war zone all around the Capitol District. This is no time to start dumping even more criminals out on the streets and emptying the jails.