Legislation

The American Civil Liberties Union of the District of Columbia (ACLU-D.C.) believes that relying on outdated approaches to public safety—such as over-policing and over-incarceration—is ineffective and does not make our communities safer. Instead, D.C. must prioritize systems and programs that provide holistic security and support our communities. We believe this approach will make our communities safer, and help the District’s young residents grow into healthy, successful adults.

On Thursday, December 4, 2025, Councilmember Brooke Pinto, Chairwoman of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, held a public hearing on public safety in the District as well as B26-358, the “First Responder Retention Efforts,” B26-0052, the “Evidence-Based Gun Violence Reduction and Prevention Act of 2025,” B26-328, the “Vehicular Terrorism Prevention Amendment Act of 2025,” and B26-411, the “Child Fatality Review Committee Amendment Act of 2025,” and B26-0461, the “Juvenile Curf Amendment Act of 2025.” ACLU-D.C. provided testimony only on public safety in the District and the Juvenile Curfew Amendment Act.

We urge the D.C. Council to take immediately to address the egregious and inhumane conditions of the D.C. Jail facilities, the complete lack of transparency and accountability demonstrated by the D.C. Department of Corrections (DOC)

"We oppose this bill. As we explain below, we think it is an outrageous attempt to shield potential government misconduct from the legal rules that apply to everyone else."

"District leaders must confront their biases, break the cycle, and use this critical moment to prioritize investment in prevention, community-based violence interruption and trauma services, school-based mental health services, restorative justice, and other effective public safety strategies."

The ACLU-DC hopes the D.C. Council refuses to revert back to failed carceral approaches that have guided the District’s policies for too long. D.C. should strive to be an example to other jurisdictions of what public and community safety in the 21st century can look like.