A progressive councilmember in the nation's capital is facing a recall effort from residents fed up with the city's surging violence, as French bulldogs become thieves' latest targets.
A recall effort was launched against Washington, D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen in December over his criminal justice reform policies amid a crime wave gripping the city in recent years, with 2023 ending with 274 murders — the most in over two decades, according to Metropolitan Police Department data. Robberies and thefts spiked 67% and 23%, respectively, while motor vehicle thefts almost doubled.
"I don't think Mr. Allen gets it," Jennifer Squires, a 23-year D.C. resident leading the recall effort against the Ward 6 councilmember, told Axios. Squires, who previously voted for Allen, criticized the Democrat's criminal justice reform positions and called the ongoing crime wave "shocking."
Allen, the former chairperson of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, voted for a criminal code reform that would have lowered penalties for certain offenses like burglaries and carjackings, though Congress and President Biden ultimately blocked the move last year. Critics have also condemned Allen for supporting progressive legislation that enables criminals, such as decriminalizing fare evasion and slashing millions from the police budget in 2020.
In response to the recall effort, Allen said he always puts the community first, noting that he won re-election unopposed in 2022 with over 90% of the vote, Axios reported.
"I never take the support of my neighbors for granted, but I also know I share their values and provide leadership they're proud of," Allen told Axios.
BLUE BASTION BATTERED BY HOMICIDE SURGE, VIOLENT CRIME SPREE FACES MAJOR 911 DELAYS
The recall organizers need to collect signatures from at least 10% of registered voters in Ward 6 to move forward to a special election, according to Axios.
The skyrocketing crime wave has caused some businesses to move or shut down, including a nearly 10-year-old wine bar that closed in December after the restaurant faced five burglaries in five months. One former D.C. resident, Lindsay Reusser, previously told Fox News she fled the city in May 2022 to escape the escalating violence.
"I would get up before work to go grocery shopping because I didn't feel safe going to the grocery store at night," Reusser, who lived in the nation's capital for over a decade, said. "Since COVID, D.C. has just become a very dark place. It just felt like there weren't any redeeming qualities of the city for me."
Now, some D.C. pet owners don't feel safe walking their canines in the district and are taking precautions to protect themselves from dog nappers, Axios reported. French bulldogs, in particular, have become the latest targets in the district with several were stolen toward the end of 2023.
Such thieves target expensive breeds for resale, including Frenchies, which have been the most stolen breed since 2020, according to AKC Reunite. Dog thefts have risen nearly 40% nationwide since 2021.
A D.C. woman, whose French bulldog died when a doggy daycare flooded in 2023, had her new Frenchie stolen in November when a masked mugger confronted her on her doorstep, The Washington Post reported. The puppy was later found and returned to her, but other dog parents haven't been as fortunate.
In November, three armed robbers stole three French bulldogs from a man while walking in a residential neighborhood, according to MPD.
"It’s just like somebody literally taking a part of your family and like … taking it away," the dog owner told a local FOX affiliate in November. "Frenchies are known for being expensive, but it’s those bonds I can never recreate. I thought I had 10 years with each one of them, and just like that, gone."
"It’s traumatic," he continued. "I don’t wish this on anybody."
Allen and Squires did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
