Capitol Hill authorities issued an advisory to members of Congress and their staffers on Friday, warning them to stay alert as violent attacks against lawmakers have increased around Washington, D.C., in recent months.
The Senate Sergeant-at-Arms reportedly sent a bulletin to Senate chiefs of staff, administrative managers, chief clerks, and staff directors suggesting tips to reduce the risk of becoming a victim of carjackings, armed robberies, or other criminal activity around the nation’s capital.
“Local authorities note an increase in carjacking incidents in and around Capitol Hill and the District of Columbia,” the bulletin reportedly said, according to Fox News.
The advisory included basic cautionary tips, including securing car doors and windows, hiding valuable items, and parking in a well-lit location near walkways. Other suggestions include never stopping to help a stranger with a broken-down vehicle and reducing walking alone in public.
The executive officer of the Senate also advised Capitol Hill personnel on how to handle being “confronted by a carjacker with a weapon.”
“Your safety is paramount; surrender your car without argument and swiftly leave the area,” the bulletin reportedly read. “Attempt to recall the carjacker’s physical details (gender, race, age, hair/eye color, distinctive features, clothing).”
Criminal activity in the D.C. area has surged in recent years, according to Metropolitan Police Department data reported by the outlet. In 2021, homicides reached a nearly two-decade high in the nation’s capital after authorities recorded 226 murders. The rate of homicides dropped in 2022 but still crossed over the 200 mark.
Acting D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith reportedly said the city already recorded its 200th homicide in 2023, meaning murders could reach levels the area hasn’t seen since the 1990s.
Other crime statistics reported indicate violent crime is up nearly 40% from last year while property crime continues to surge, including motor vehicle thefts increasing 106% and robberies up 65%.
A number of congressional lawmakers and staffers have been victims of violent assaults around Capitol Hill in recent months, including armed robberies and carjackings.
The Washington Post reported last week a male robbed Amanda Peper — a staffer for Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) — at gunpoint roughly a mile from the Capitol Building. Peper reportedly was walking to her building when the robbery occurred. Authorities said a man approached her, pointed a gun at her face, and demanded she hand over her belongings.
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) was carjacked by three armed assailants in D.C.’s upscale Navy Yard neighborhood earlier this month.
Cuellar later said Washington, D.C., is about “two to three” times more dangerous than his border district in south Texas.
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“I’ve always said when I talk about the border that there is an immigration crisis there. But I would say that when you look at the numbers of murders, rape, assaults at the border — let’s say in Laredo, Texas — I’ve always said that Washington is about two or three times more dangerous, and we certainly see it now,” Cuellar said during an interview with Fox News earlier this month.
Rep. Brad Finstad (R-MN) said in June that a member of his staff was attacked by an armed assailant just blocks away from the Capitol Building. The staffer was assaulted near his home following the annual Congressional baseball game, according to a statement from the congressman. He sustained minor injuries.
Another Republican, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, said in March that one of his staffers was “brutally attacked in broad daylight” in D.C. The Metropolitan Police Department said the adult male victim was stabbed multiple times and treated at a hospital for life-threatening injuries. Court documents show the victim told a detective at the hospital that he did not know the suspect, nor did the suspect make any demands before the attack.
In February, Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN) was assaulted by a 26-year-old homeless man in an elevator at her D.C. apartment building. Craig said she was “very, very lucky that [she] was not more injured.”
Daniel Chaitin and Zach Jewell contributed to this report.