Crime in Washington, D.C.

Crime in Washington, D.C., is directly related to the city's demographics, geography, and unique criminal justice system. The District's population reached a peak of 802,178 in 1950. Shortly after that, the city began losing residents, and by 1980 Washington had lost one-quarter of its population. The population loss to the suburbs also created a new demographic pattern, which divided affluent neighborhoods west of Rock Creek Park from the less well-off neighborhoods to the east.

Despite being the headquarters of multiple federal law enforcement agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the nationwide crack epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s greatly affected the city and led to large increases in crime. The number of homicides in Washington peaked in 1991 at 482, a rate of 80.6 homicides per 100,000 residents, and the city eventually became known as the "murder capital" of the United States.

The crime rate started to fall in the mid-1990s as the crack cocaine epidemic gave way to economic revitalization projects. Neighborhood improvement efforts and new business investment have also started to transform neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River, leading to the first rise in the District's population in 60 years.

By the mid-2000s, crime rates in Washington dropped to their lowest levels in over 20 years, to less than a fifth of record highs. From 2024-2025, the rate of violent crime in DC reached a 30-year low, according to data from the United States Attorney's office. In August 2025, President Donald Trump claimed without evidence that Washington, D.C. was "overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals". D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser countered Trump's claim, stating that violent crime in the DC area is at its lowest level in three decades.