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Tag: ward 8

  • White House says many arrests are being made in DC’s Wards 7 and 8 – WTOP News

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    The White House is pushing back against criticism that the federal takeover of D.C.’s police department and National Guard personnel is not focusing on the high-crime areas of D.C.

    The White House is pushing back against criticism that the federal takeover of D.C.’s police department, along with the growing number of National Guard personnel, is not focusing enough on the high-crime areas of D.C.

    Democratic members of Congress, as well as community activists, have accused President Donald Trump and his administration of using National Guard members as props for photo ops in heavily trafficked tourist areas.

    They argue that federal law enforcement has not been placed east of the Anacostia River, where the highest concentration of violent crime occurs in the District, according to crime statistics maps.

    “All of this is a total abuse of power. It’s a manufactured emergency,” U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said in a weekend interview on ABC’s “This Week.”

    White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday addressed criticism linked to the city’s crime hot spots.

    “In fact, nearly half of all of the non-illegal alien arrests have occurred in Wards 7 and 8,” she said.

    A White House official told WTOP that between Aug. 9 and Aug. 17, there had been a total of 212 non-immigration related arrests. Of those, 101 were in Wards 7 and 8.

    Of those 101 arrests, 40 arrests were made in Ward 7 and 61 arrests in Ward 8. The greatest numbers were for gun-related and drug-related charges. Twenty-four of the arrests were for gun-related charges in Ward 8, along with 13 arrests for drug charges.

    Crime was already trending downward in the crime hot spots

    Residents in the two wards have complained for years about the high level of crime and many residents say they are glad the issue is being taken seriously across the city.

    But there has also been skepticism about the latest crime-fighting efforts, since so much attention has focused on National Guard members and law enforcement in other parts of D.C.

    Crime, while still high in the two southern wards, has been trending downward, according to numbers provided by D.C.’s police department.

    In Ward 8, there were 99 murders in 2023. Last year, there were 66.

    As of Tuesday, there had been 38 murders in Ward 8 this year. By comparison, there have been four murders in Ward 2, which includes the National Mall and Georgetown.

    D.C. crime data shows that motor vehicle thefts in Ward 8 spiked in 2023 at 1,014. That figure dropped to 732 last year; and in 2025, there have been 443 so far.

    However, those crime numbers have come under scrutiny. Earlier this year, a Metropolitan Police Department commander suspected of manipulating crime data was placed on paid administrative leave, NBC Washington reported. The Justice Department has opened an investigation into whether D.C. police officials falsified data to make crime rates appear lower than they are. 

    The White House has been releasing daily figures related to arrests made by federal authorities, and Leavitt said Tuesday that it will continue to do so.

    While many Republican-led states are sending additional National Guard members to D.C., one GOP governor has decided not to. Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) has “politely declined” a federal request.

    A spokesman for the governor said he did not view enforcement of the law as a proper use of the National Guard. He said the outcome might be different if officials with the D.C. government were making a request related to an emergency situation.

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    © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Mitchell Miller

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  • Anacostia Hub opens to help connect DC residents to city services – WTOP News

    Anacostia Hub opens to help connect DC residents to city services – WTOP News

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    Many of the services that D.C. provides are only steps away, but people might not realize it. Wendy Glenn, the city’s first ward manager, is helping connect residents to the services that District has to offer.

    In a building off Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Southeast, Wendy Glenn sat behind a desk, helping residents connect to the services that the District has to offer them. She’s the city’s first ward manager, a position D.C. plans to introduce to all eight wards.

    Her team will operate out of the newly-opened Safe Commercial Corridor Hub in the Salvation Army Building. Many of the services that D.C. provides are only steps away, she said, but people might not realize it.

    Glenn will lead Ward 8’s team of representatives with the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations and Services. She said nearby residents who come to the hub can connect with the Department of Housing and Community Development and D.C. Health for any sort of assistance they may need.

    The hub is staffed by outreach teams from multiple public safety and human services agencies that can respond to challenges in the community, including crime, mental health issues and substance abuse. For people returning to the community after incarceration, they can find help at the Mayor’s Office of Returning Citizens Affairs.

    “There’s so many things along this Avenue that you cannot and will not miss a beat as far as getting your city services done,” Glenn said.

    With concerns over crime in the city, WTOP heard from residents last year who called for city leaders to be more visible in Ward 8, and Glenn said her hope is the team, along with the other resources provided at the hub, will help show the city is there.

    “We walk around the Corridor to make sure that people know that the mayor’s office is here,” she said.

    The hub will also be staffed with a D.C. police officer, who Glenn said will not only help residents in times of need but also better relationships between the community and law enforcement.

    “Having the police here to just say, ‘Hey, how you doing? How’s your day going? Can I help you with something?’ Just to have them here, to have a presence, is really good for us,” she said.

    Additionally, D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith said the new hub would add law enforcement resources to Anacostia.

    “It’ll give our officers the opportunity to be readily accessible,” Smith said. “We will cut down on response time.”

    City leaders said the Safe Commercial Corridor Hub that’s already been established in Chinatown has been a success, noting a 78% drop in violent crime within 1,000 feet of the hub since it opened.

    Who is Wendy Glenn?

    Ward 8 Safety Hub Manager Wendy Glenn (center) with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser at the opening of the Anacostia location on Thursday.

    Glenn’s passion for helping her community came from her experience of being someone who needed assistance but didn’t have access to it when she was young, she said.

    Glenn was in foster care early in her life in Philadelphia, which she said was difficult because, at the time, the city lacked the services to help her. She later became an emancipated minor at 16.

    Her move to D.C. didn’t come for another 13 years. In 1995, the a newly-divorced mom of two decided to move to the nation’s capital after being inspired by the Million Man March where thousands of Black men marched on the National Mall to promote unity and combat negative stereotypes.

    “I didn’t really need to stay in Philadelphia, where I felt like it was just too many bad memories,” Glenn said.

    After moving to the District, she worked in several federal government roles before starting with the D.C. government. She worked for the city’s Department of Employment Services, Parks and Recreation, and eventually was hired by the mayor’s office.

    Beyond all that, she said her children have flourished in the city.

    “For me, raising my children here has been the best thing ever,” she said.

    Her goal in this position is to see Ward 8 flourish too, and she believes this hub will help it continue to grow, she said.

    “I love this role,” Glenn said. “Managing this hub, working in this hub, is the best thing that I could have done in my career.”

    WTOP’s Nick Iannelli contributed to this report. 

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Mike Murillo

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  • Red Rabbit plans to bring ‘culturally relevant’ meals to DC Wards 7 and 8 – WTOP News

    Red Rabbit plans to bring ‘culturally relevant’ meals to DC Wards 7 and 8 – WTOP News

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    New York-based social justice organization, Red Rabbit, is looking to expand to D.C. Wards 7 and 8’s school cafeterias.

    New York-based social justice organization, Red Rabbit, is looking to expand to D.C. Wards 7 and 8’s school cafeterias.
    (Courtesy Red Rabbit)

    Courtesy Red Rabbit

    A member of Red Rabbit’s kitchen staff practices making rice and chicken that they will serve in D.C.’s schools next year.
    (Courtesy Red Rabbit)

    Courtesy Red Rabbit

    Red Rabbit kitchen staff practice making the meals that will serve D.C.’s southern schools next year.
    (Courtesy Red Rabbit)

    Courtesy Red Rabbit

    Some of the meals that Red Rabbit will prepare in D.C. schools next year.
    (Photo By Erica Price for Red Rabbit)

    Photo By Erica Price for Red Rabbit

    A New York-based organization which works to bring “culturally relevant” meals to school cafeterias is looking to expand into D.C.’s Wards 7 and 8. Red Rabbit currently serves meals at schools in the Big Apple, New Jersey and in Philadelphia.

    “We try to provide them, to the best of our ability, with nutritious, culturally relevant, scratch made and soul-affirming foods so that they feel their best and are able to perform their best both inside the classroom and outside,” said Nausher Khan, vice president of partner relations for Red Rabbit — which calls itself a social justice organization.

    The organization started providing meals in 2005 and is now studying the areas east of the Anacostia River, Khan said. The two wards were identified as having the most need, according to Khan, by examining socioeconomic indicators such as food insecurity levels, education attainment, literacy and even graduation rates.

    While the exact meal needs are still being determined, Khan said by the start of the next school year, the organization hopes to begin providing meals to K-12 students.

    He said the area they look to serve in D.C. appears to be similar to Philadelphia demographically. This includes a large percentage of African American and Latino students in need.

    “We are still in the process of that fact-finding, of really getting to understand the cultures at a granular level in Wards 7 and 8, but at a larger bird’s eye view, this is what we have identified so far,” he said.

    Khan said he could see meals they are serving elsewhere fitting in well in the two wards.

    “Ropa vieja is a Cuban beef stew that is sort of ubiquitously appreciated by a lot of the cultures of the Caribbean. Similarly, pollo con arroz, which is chicken with rice, is again another sort of really popular menu with students from the Caribbean, or from Latin countries,” he said.

    When cafeterias have space, Khan said they can open up a kitchen at a school, otherwise they can cook the daily meals elsewhere, and bring them into the cafeterias they support. They still don’t know which method would work best in the District.

    From those who work with students, to organizations that already provide food assistance in areas that are considered food deserts, Khan said they are examining the area and hope to have more concrete plans over the next six months. Some of the conversations taking place include talks with possible partner organizations such as D.C. Hunger Solutions and DC Central Kitchen.

    The plan is to grow the program and potentially reach out to areas of Maryland and Virginia down the road, he said.

    “The aim is, with each successive year, we get to learn a little bit more and we get to expand our offering to make sure it is tailored to the needs of that community,” Khan said.

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Mike Murillo

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