Strong Sentences for Safer D.C. Streets Act of 2025
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The bill would rewrite mandatory minimum sentences for several violent crimes in the District of Columbia, including making life imprisonment without release mandatory for first-degree murder and repealing the ban on sentencing juveniles to life without parole.
It would also create or raise mandatory minimums for second-degree murder, kidnapping, rape, sexual abuse, carjacking, and burglary, reshaping how D.C. judges must sentence people convicted of these offenses regardless of individual circumstances.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would amend the District of Columbia's criminal code to increase or newly impose mandatory minimum prison sentences for a set of violent crimes. First-degree murder would carry a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without release, replacing the current 30-year minimum, and the bill would repeal provisions barring courts from sentencing people under 18 to life without parole for that offense. It would establish new mandatory minimums of 10 years for second-degree murder and kidnapping, and 25 years for first-degree sexual abuse and rape (30 years if the person has a prior conviction for a crime of violence). The bill would also raise existing mandatory minimums: first-degree burglary from 5 to 10 years, unarmed carjacking from 7 to 10 years, and armed carjacking from 15 to 20 years. It would apply only to criminal conduct occurring after enactment, and it does not change sentencing for offenses outside the specific list amended.
Key provisions
- 1Would make life imprisonment without release the mandatory sentence for first-degree murder, replacing the current 30-year minimum
- 2Would repeal the prohibition on sentencing people under 18 to life imprisonment without parole for first-degree murder
- 3Would establish a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence for second-degree murder
- 4Would set mandatory minimums of 25 years for rape and first-degree sexual abuse, rising to 30 years for rape with a prior violent-crime conviction
- 5Would establish a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence for kidnapping
- 6Would raise mandatory minimums for unarmed carjacking (to 10 years) and armed carjacking (to 20 years)
- 7Would raise the mandatory minimum sentence for first-degree burglary from 5 to 10 years
Who would be affected
People charged with or convicted of first- and second-degree murder, kidnapping, rape, first-degree sexual abuse, carjacking, or first-degree burglary in the District of Columbia, including juveniles facing first-degree murder charges. D.C. courts, prosecutors, public defenders, and the D.C. Department of Corrections would also be affected in applying the new sentencing rules.
Why it matters
If enacted, defendants convicted of these crimes in D.C. would face longer, less flexible prison terms, and judges would lose discretion to sentence below the new floors. Repealing the juvenile life-without-parole ban would let courts impose that sentence on minors convicted of first-degree murder, a significant change with lasting consequences for those defendants.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends D.C. Official Code sec. 22-2104 (first-degree murder sentencing) (Sec. 2(a)(1))
Replaces the 30-year minimum with mandatory life imprisonment without release and strikes a subsection allowing lesser sentences
Repeals D.C. Official Code sec. 22-2104.01 (Sec. 2(a)(2))
Repeals conforming sentencing-procedure provision tied to the old first-degree murder sentencing scheme
Amends D.C. Official Code sec. 24-403.01(b-2)(1) (Sec. 2(a)(3))
Strikes language conditioning imposition of sentences over 60 years for first-degree murder, conforming to the new mandatory life sentence
Amends D.C. Official Code sec. 22-2104(c) (second-degree murder) (Sec. 2(b))
Adds a 10-year mandatory minimum where none previously applied
Amends D.C. Official Code sec. 24-403(b) (rape sentencing) (Sec. 2(c)(1))
Sets a 25-year mandatory minimum for rape and 30 years for rape with a prior violent-crime conviction
Amends Anti-Sexual Abuse Act of 1994, sec. 22-3002(a)-(b) (Sec. 2(c)(2)-(3))
Establishes a 25-year mandatory minimum for first-degree sexual abuse and removes the aggravating-circumstances requirement for sentences over 30 years
Amends D.C. Official Code sec. 22-2001 (kidnapping) (Sec. 2(d))
Adds a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence for kidnapping
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- The Act and its sentencing amendments apply to criminal conduct occurring after enactment
Funding and costs
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 5172 would have no cost to the federal government.
H.R. 5172 would make changes to the District of Columbia Code regarding mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines for various violent offenses. Because the bill would affect only the District of Columbia — not the federal government — CBO estimates it would have no effect on federal direct spending, revenues, or the deficit. The estimate does not identify any intergovernmental or private-sector mandates exceeding statutory thresholds.
How implementation would work
The bill would take effect by directly amending D.C. Official Code sentencing provisions, so it would apply automatically once enacted rather than requiring new regulations. It would apply only to criminal conduct occurring after enactment, meaning D.C. courts would use the old sentencing rules for pending cases involving earlier conduct and the new mandatory minimums for future offenses. No new agency, reporting structure, or grant process is created; implementation falls to existing D.C. courts, prosecutors, and corrections officials applying the revised code sections at sentencing.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 279.
Official CRS summary
Show the CRS summaryHide the CRS summary
This bill establishes and increases mandatory minimum sentences of imprisonment for specified crimes in the District of Columbia.
First, the bill mandates a sentence of life imprisonment without parole for first-degree murder (currently, the mandatory minimum sentence is 30 years imprisonment and the maximum sentence is life imprisonment without parole). The bill also repeals provisions that prohibit the sentencing of individuals under the age of 18 to life imprisonment without parole for first-degree murder.
The bill also establishes a mandatory minimum sentence of
- 10 years imprisonment for second-degree murder,
- 10 years imprisonment for kidnapping,
- 25 years imprisonment for first- degree sexual abuse, and
- 25 years imprisonment for rape.
Finally, the bill increases the mandatory minimum sentence for
- first-degree burglary from 5 years to 10 years imprisonment,
- unarmed carjacking from 7 years to 10 years imprisonment,
- armed carjacking from 15 years to 20 years imprisonment, and
- rape with a prior conviction of a crime of violence from 7 years to 30 years imprisonment.
Legislative subjects
Assault and harassment offenses; Crime and Law Enforcement; Crimes against property; Criminal procedure and sentencing; District of Columbia; Motor vehicles; Sex offenses; Violent crime
Committee report
H. Rept. 119-326