Federal judge threatens restraining order on Trump police control

A judge on Friday weighed limiting the power of the Trump administration to assume control of the police department in Washington, D.C., after suggesting the appointment of Drug Enforcement Administration head Terry Cole to assume the police chief’s duties was illegal.

Judge Ana Reyes gave lawyers for the Department of Justice and the D.C. government until early evening to reach a deal that would limit Cole’s authority, or she would issue a temporary restraining order.

Reyes, a Biden appointee, said broader questions over President Donald Trump’s sweeping executive order declaring a crime emergency in the nation’s capital would be addressed in a court hearing next week. 

In the immediate future, the Trump administration will still largely have control over the Metropolitan Police Department regardless of whether it reaches a deal with the D.C. government or becomes subject to a court order.

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Reyes convened the emergency hearing after D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb sued to block Trump’s takeover of D.C.’s law enforcement operations. Schwalb argued the move was unconstitutional and violated the Home Rule Act, a federal law that gives D.C. residents the ability to self-govern.

The hearing was a small setback for the administration, as Reyes indicated that Cole must go through Mayor Muriel Bowser to give any further directives to the police force.

Schwalb on Friday framed the hearing as a win, telling reporters his “expectation is that the key issue with respect to control and command of [the MPD] has been resolved today, and that it is clear, as a matter of law, that it is under the chief of police appointed by the mayor.”

But the law also implies that Bowser must be heavily deferential to Cole, meaning he is likely to be able to continue carrying out the Trump administration’s