Bondi backs off initial order to take over D.C. police, issues new directive that keeps chief in place

WASHINGTON — Washington, D.C.'s police chief is the force's top official once again, after the Trump administration rescinded an order that stripped her of power less than a day after U.S.

WASHINGTON — Washington, D.C.'s police chief is the force's top official once again, after the Trump administration rescinded an order that stripped her of power less than a day after U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi issued it.

As part of an agreement struck Friday between attorneys from the Department of Justice and D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb's office, Drug Enforcement Administration Chief Terry Cole will now be considered Bondi’s “designee,” instead of the emergency police chief, a position Bondi sought in her original order that claimed federal control of the department.

The agreement allows Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith to maintain control of the day-to-day operations of her department, while taking orders from Mayor Muriel Bowser.

In a new order Bondi issued Friday evening, the Department of Justice directed Bowser to order the police department to assist in immigration enforcement operations and to comply with database inquiries and requests for information from any federal law enforcement entity.

This effectively strips Washington, D.C., of its "sanctuary city" status.