President Donald Trump on August 25, 2025, signed two executive orders in Washington, D.C., aimed at ending cashless bail nationwide and directing the Justice Department to investigate and prosecute flag burning.
One order pressures Washington, D.C., and other jurisdictions to end cashless bail, threatening to revoke federal funding for cities that maintain the practice. The directive tasks Attorney General Pam Bondi with identifying jurisdictions using cashless bail and cutting off federal grants to them.
“We’re ending it,” President Trump said before signing the order in the Oval Office. “We’re starting with D.C., which we have the authority to do through federalization.”
The White House noted that since federal officers and National Guard troops were deployed across D.C. in recent days, no homicides have been reported in the city for 11 consecutive days. D.C. first adopted cashless bail in the 1990s, citing civil rights concerns. President Trump, however, however, argued that cashless bail worsened crime. “They kill people and they get out,” he said.
Another executive order seeks to maximize federal custody of suspects in D.C. and prioritize charging them with federal crimes. President Trump also instructed federal agencies to expand personnel to allow rapid deployment of officers, suggesting Chicago could be next for a federal crime crackdown.
In addition, President Trump signed an order directing the Justice Department to investigate cases of flag desecration, despite a 1989 Supreme Court ruling that protects flag burning under the First Amendment. The administration has criticized demonstrations, including pro-Palestinian and anti-immigration protests, where American flags were burned.
According to staff secretary Will Scharf, the order instructs prosecutors to pursue cases where criminal charges would not violate free speech protections. President Trump said he wants the penalty for flag burning to be a minimum of one year in prison, without early release.
