National Guard troops patrolling in D.C. will be paired with local law enforcement personnel, at least temporarily, in the wake of the Wednesday attack that killed one troop and critically injured another, according to an email obtained by The Washington Post and two D.C. police officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss planning that is still in progress.
“Officers will conduct high-visibility patrols with the National Guard and provide assistance as needed,” said the email, which was sent to D.C. police leadership Wednesday evening. The email said the situation was “fluid,” and adjustments to the staffing plan could be made in the coming days.
If enacted on a long-term basis, the change would significantly shift the way National Guard troops have worked with local and federal law enforcement in the District since their arrival in August. Trump administration officials have credited the troops for helping reduce crime in the city — in part, they argued, because the troops’ presence at Metro stations and on National Park Service lands frees up law enforcement to police other areas of the city. Diverting local police to accompany Guard members would do essentially the opposite by siphoning them from other tasks in D.C. neighborhoods.
The email said the new pairing would start Thursday and Friday. A D.C. police official said some officers had been temporarily detailed to accompany the troops, and a more long-term policy change was under discussion.
The official, who stressed that the discussions were still preliminary, said D.C. police, Metro Transit Police, U.S. Park Police and several other law enforcement agencies were having conversations with the National Guard task force in D.C. about pairing the troops with police officers while they are on city streets. Since their deployment to D.C., groups of National Guard troops have largely operated unaccompanied by police, the official said.
The policy change would bolster protection for the approximately 2,000 National Guard members deployed to the District as part of President Donald Trump’s “Safe and Beautiful Task Force,” who are not required to have the same law enforcement training as city police officers.
A D.C. police spokesperson did not confirm the shift in policy but said in a statement that “law enforcement agencies across Washington, DC, including the Metropolitan Police Department, are working in close coordination with the National Guard to ensure the safety of our community.”
The Guard’s continued presence in the city remains the subject of litigation. D.C. Attorney Brian Schwalb (D) sued the Trump administration over the deployment in September, seeking the troops’ withdrawal from the city and describing their presence as an illegal “military occupation” that increased the risk of deadly encounters between residents and troops. Trump administration lawyers said in court that the risk of a deadly encounter was “totally speculative.”
“There have actually been fewer deadly encounters because the National Guard has been here, allowing a surge of resources,” Eric Hamilton, an attorney for the Trump administration, said in an October hearing.
Earlier this month, a judge said the deployment was illegal and ordered that it be halted as the lawsuit continues in court. But the judge paused her order from going into effect until Dec. 11 to give the administration time to appeal. The administration has since asked an appeals court to allow the D.C. mission to continue, requesting a ruling on an emergency basis by Dec. 4 and excoriating the judge’s order as a “wholly unjustified incursion into the territory of both the President and Congress.”
Still, in internal memos, officials have acknowledged the risks associated with the deployment since its inception.
“The Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Mission presents an opportunity for criminals, violent extremists, issue motivated groups and lone actors to advance their interests,” reads an internal document from D.C. National Guard leadership made public through Schwalb’s lawsuit. The document, which outlined the deployment’s objectives, was dated Aug. 12, the day after the president declared a crime emergency in the city.
A second memo, dated Aug. 28, warned service members that “those inspired by foreign terrorist organizations” might view the mission as a target. That same day, a member of the D.C. National Guard asked D.C. police for increased patrols in areas where troops are staying.
“Service members are being harassed at these hotels,” he wrote in the email reviewed by The Washington Post. Court records said local law enforcement agreed to increase patrols and troops were instructed to take measures to protect themselves, including always using the “buddy system” and changing into civilian clothes when off duty.
In the aftermath of this week’s fatal attack, Trump administration officials have doubled down on the need for the troops in the city. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said within hours of the shooting that Trump had asked him to add 500 troops to the D.C. mission, adding that the shooting had “stiffen[ed] our resolve to ensure that we make Washington, D.C. safe and beautiful.”
Asked Thursday whether he would take any additional security measures for National Guard troops in the city, Trump replied, “No, just I want to have more.”
The troops were visibly accompanied by D.C. police on Thanksgiving Day. After a news conference Thursday at U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro’s office, a group of four National Guard members were patrolling with a single D.C. police officer near Seventh Street and Indiana Avenue in Northwest Washington. They got coffee together at a nearby Starbucks, then walked northbound on Seventh Street.
As they strolled, a staff member from Pirro’s office walking in the opposite direction said, “I’m sorry, guys.” Other pedestrians called out apologies as the group patrolled together.
Nicole Asbury contributed to this report.
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