Section 10-A1112. CSF-4 PUBLIC SAFETY AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

 

1112.1Public safety affects the lives of District residents on several levels. First, despite marked improvements since the 1990s, violent crime remains a fact of life in the District of Columbia. The homicide rate is half what it was 12 years ago, but it is still too high. Violent crime remains a problem in many neighborhoods and substantially reduces the quality of life for law-abiding residents and businesses. 1112.1

 

1112.2Second, fire and emergency medical services are essential to protect life and property, to respond to fires, and to assist residents requiring paramedic help or ambulance transportation. The city’s ability to respond quickly may be compromised as streets become more congested. Competing demands for water and deteriorating infrastructure may also affect firefighting capacity. 1112.2

 

1112.3Third, public safety personnel keep the city functioning during major public events, ranging from inaugurations to demonstrations to street fairs. The operations of District and Capitol Police, transit police, and others are essential to maintaining law and order (see text box to the left for an overview of major law enforcement providers in the city). 1112.3

 

1112.4Policing the National Capital

 

As the nation’s capital, there are numerous police and security forces besides the MPD with responsibilities for security and law enforcement. Some of the most prominent are:

 

•The United States Park Police is a unit of the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. They provide law enforcement services to designated areas within the National Park Service around the country including National Parks Service areas within and around Washington, DC.

 

•The US Capitol Police protect the Congress and enforce traffic regulations throughout the large complex of congressional buildings, parks, and roadways around the US Capitol.

 

•The United States Secret Service is a unit of the Department of Homeland Security. The Secret Service has primary jurisdiction over the protection of the President, Vice President, their immediate families, other high ranking government officials, and visiting foreign heads of state and government.

 

•The Metro Transit Police Department provides a variety of law enforcement and public safety services on the Metrorail and Metrobus systems in the Washington Metropolitan Area.

 

1112.5Finally, and perhaps most significantly, public safety has taken on new dimensions with the elevated threat of terrorism. The District’s government institutions, defense interests, and iconic monuments stand out as some of the nation’s most visible symbols. This unique status makes it imperative that the District’s emergency preparedness efforts be better coordinated to anticipate and respond to national security concerns. The District also must be prepared to respond to natural disasters, such as hurricanes, floods, and other extreme weather events, and to hazardous material spills and other accidents. 1112.5

 

notation

The provisions of Title 10, Part A of the DCMR accessible through this web interface are codification of the District Elements of the Comprehensive Plan for the National Capital. As such, they do not represent the organic provisions adopted by the Council of the District of Columbia. The official version of the District Elements only appears as a hard copy volume of Title 10, Part A published pursuant to section 9a of the District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1994, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; D.C. Official Code § 1 -301.66)) . In the event of any inconsistency between the provisions accessible through this site and the provisions contained in the published version of Title 10, Part A, the provisions contained in the published version govern. A copy of the published District Elements is available www.planning.dc.gov.