Authorities arrested two of the three alleged attackers who broke into a Secret Service SUV of President Joe Biden’s granddaughter, according to authorities and court documents.
The arrests represent seemingly rare cases in which authorities arrested suspects accused of crime. The timing of the arrests suggests the Biden administration recognizes soaring crime as a political vulnerability for the Democrat party.
Crime in the Democrat-controlled city spiked in 2023, according to police department data:
- Homicides: Up 35 percent
- Robberies: Up 67 percent
- Violent Crime: Up 39 percent
- Motor Vehicle Theft: Up 82 percent
People walk down 16th street after “Defund The Police” was painted on the street near the White House on June 8, 2020, in Washington, DC. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty)
The Washington Post reported the specifics of the first arrest, which occurred on February 14:
The arrests of 19-year-old Robert Kemp and the youth came after authorities said a D.C. police officer found the getaway car, a stolen red Toyota Corolla, abandoned in 16th Street Heights. Inside it were items taken from the Secret Service vehicle, including a protective vest, night-vision goggles, a first aid bag and a computer router. Authorities also found a McDonald’s bag and food receipt; the affidavit says fingerprints on the items led them to the arrests.
The U.S. Secret Service says in the affidavit that Kemp, who lives in Northwest Washington, was charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle pertaining to the Corolla and theft in connection with the items taken from the Secret Service vehicle, a black Ford Expedition.
A charging document filed in court shows only the unauthorized-use charge, typically filed when authorities cannot prove a person linked to the vehicle is the same person who stole it. A spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney’s office in D.C. said she could not comment on charging decisions. Prosecutors can file additional charges as the investigation continues.
Authorities also arrested an unidentified 14-year-old on Friday. They charged him with three counts of armed carjacking and alleged he was involved in several additional crimes around the District. The Post reported police said the 14-year-old was linked to the Secret Service SUV incident. Authorities charged him as a juvenile.
Residents in the District blame Biden-appointed U.S. attorney Matthew Graves for the crime surge. Graves refused to prosecute 67 percent of those arrested who would have been put on trial in the D.C. Superior Court, according to 2022 District statistics. In 2023, he did not prosecute 56 percent of those arrested.
U.S. Attorney for D.C. Matthew Graves (Craig Hudson for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Much of the D.C. crime is carried out by juveniles. For instance, 65 percent of those arrested for carjacking are juveniles, according to police data. In the first ten months of 2023, 760 carjackings occurred.
Graves said in August that his office would crack down on some crimes committed by juveniles, but his office generally does not prosecute them. Because the D.C. juvenile court maintains jurisdiction over delinquent acts, prosecutors in juvenile court must file a petition to transfer juveniles to criminal court for prosecution as adults. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then prosecutes the juveniles in the adult system from a statutory list of serious crimes. Graves has the first right of refusal of such a petitioned case.
Wendell Husebo is a political reporter with Breitbart News and a former GOP War Room Analyst. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality. Follow Wendell on “X” @WendellHusebø or on Truth Social @WendellHusebo.
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