Washington, D.C.’s criminal-justice system produced another gut-punch to law-abiding Americans this week when Associate Judge Kendra Briggs handed down probation instead of prison time to two 15-year-olds who brutally beat former DOGE staffer Edward Coristine during an attempted carjacking. The decision — framed from the bench as an emphasis on rehabilitation over punishment — has sparked fury across the country from conservatives who see it as emblematic of a permissive, politically captured judiciary.
The assault itself was savage: on August 3 a circle of roughly ten juveniles descended on Coristine and his companion near Logan Circle, trying to seize the car and leaving Coristine bloodied with a concussion and broken nose after he tried to protect his friend. Two teens were arrested at the scene, but the rest of the group remains at large, a fact that underscores how hollow the so-called justice served really is when only a fraction of perpetrators face consequences.
Instead of meaningful time behind bars, the boy was allowed to return home under strict house arrest while the girl was placed in a youth shelter; both received probation, curfews, electronic monitoring and community service — measures that feel more like a slap on the wrist than justice for a vicious street assault. The court’s focus on rehabilitation for juveniles would have some credibility if it were paired with accountability and a willingness to detain violent offenders until they’re properly assessed, but that’s not what happened here.
Elon Musk was blunt and correct in publicly calling out the ruling, writing on X that “this was a racist verdict by a racist judge,” and challenging whether the outcome would have been the same if the races were reversed. Whatever your view of Musk, his point tapped into a raw truth — Americans can see with their own eyes the uneven scale of justice when violent conduct yields probation instead of prison.
This isn’t abstract liberal theory; it’s real victims and real danger. Coristine himself warned that eight alleged attackers remain free, and that group had reportedly assaulted others that night — meaning the public is still at risk while judges lecture about rehabilitation from the bench. No system that prioritizes the rights of criminals over the safety of citizens can long survive without losing public trust.
President Trump and congressional conservatives have rightly seized on the ruling as proof that D.C.’s courts need reform and that juvenile offenders who participate in violent crimes must face adult-caliber consequences when appropriate. Lawmakers including Sen. Jim Banks are pushing legislation to close these gaps, and the outrage this case has generated should be fuel for passing laws that restore deterrence and protect neighborhoods.
Make no mistake: calls for compassion stop making sense when they translate into leniency for thugs who terrorize people on the street. We can and should demand rehabilitation for those who can be saved, but not at the cost of letting violent teenagers walk free while their victims carry permanent injuries. America’s priorities must be the safety of families and the preservation of order, and that starts with judges who actually punish violent criminality.
If our leaders mean business, they will hold Judge Briggs and other lenient jurists to account, finish the job of arresting the remaining suspects, and pass commonsense reforms to make sure juvenile justice protects victims as fiercely as it protects offenders. Ordinary Americans are tired of coddling that looks suspiciously like selective justice; it’s time for elected officials who stand with victims, not with the soft-left theory that excuses violent behavior.
