Prosecuted carjacking cases in Washington, DC have declined overall in 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, according to D.C. Witness data.
Carjacking charges in the District of Columbia steadily dropped in the early part of 2025 before significantly rising in May, according to D.C. Witness data. This surge came months before the Aug. 11 deployment of National Guard troops to the city in response to President Trump’s Executive Order declaring a crime emergency.
From January to April, prosecuted carjacking cases dropped by half, averaging 3.75 cases per month. But in May, cases skyrocketed more than double the previous monthly average, before falling over the summer and ultimately reaching an 80% decrease in August from May’s peak.
D.C. Witness data recorded 43 prosecuted carjacking cases, fewer than the 69 cases tracked over the same nine-month period in 2024. Early 2025 trends resumed going into October, even after the deployment of National Guard troops to address the city’s “increase in violent crime.”
Among the 2025 carjacking cases that have been resolved this year, the average time from arrest to resolution was just under 120 days. The shortest resolution being four days and the longest being 180 days.
Mark Edwards, 18, was charged with robbery and unarmed carjacking this year. Edwards accepted a plea deal and is scheduled for sentencing on Nov. 14. He was linked to at least four carjackings and robberies occurring between May 22 and 28, aligning with the time period when DC saw its highest spike in carjacking prosecutions. Edwards faces a maximum penalty of 21 years in prison, with a seven-year mandatory minimum and a $75,000 fine.
In further examining the ages of carjacking perpetrators from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30, half of all perpetrators were between 18 and 24 years old. Juveniles account for another 22%. In total, young perpetrators make up 72% of carjacking cases this year. Although perpetrators’ ages range from as young as 16 years old to as old as 51 years, the majority of cases involve younger offenders.
While overall carjacking charges have notably decreased since May, spring surges in both the 2024 and 2025 highlight that carjackings cases remain present in the court system.
