There's an outlier in D.C.'s crime drop: Assaults with a dangerous weapon.

Why it matters: D.C. police report a 40% increase in incidents compared to the same time last year — even as homicides, robberies and overall crime continue to fall.

By the numbers: There have been 768 assaults with a dangerous weapon, compared to 548 this time last year, per police data.

• The increase has been particularly concentrated in mid-city neighborhoods like Columbia Heights and east of the Anacostia River.

📊 The big picture: Overall crime is down 20% compared to this time last year, continuing a decline that began in summer 2023.

• Homicides are down 33%, and robberies are down 14%.
• But the rise in assaults with a dangerous weapon has pushed overall violent crime up 4% so far this year.

It also comes a year after President Trump's deployment of the National Guard and his crime crackdown in D.C.

• Trump continues to take credit for the broader drop, exaggerating that "D.C. went from High Crime to NO CRIME."

🔎 Between the lines: It's unclear how much of the increase is tied to more assaults — and how much reflects changes in the way police classify them.

• The Metropolitan Police Department has been under scrutiny for accusations of manipulated crime statistics. A recent report by the D.C. inspector general found lapses in police crime reporting.

What they're saying: D.C. police provided a statement to Axios that appears to suggest part of the reason for the uptick could be tied to the crime stats scandal.

• MPD says it established an Office of Data Integrity and Analytics to ensure crimes are recorded correctly. Officers took part in a "crime classification virtual training" in March, and in-person training is also scheduled.
• "Our expectation is that all MPD members classify crime accurately and consistently, and in accordance with the law," MPD spokesperson Darran Todd told Axios in an email.

Zoom out: Beyond that, police say a "significant percentage" of domestic violence cases are classified as an assault with a dangerous weapon.

• Officers are also increasing their presence in neighborhoods where assaults with weapons have risen the most.

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Chaired by President Trump, the Kennedy Center board yesterday voted to put again Trump's name on the building's facade, two anonymous sources told Axios.

Why it matters: The move challenges a federal judge's ruling back in May that only Congress could change the name of the performing arts venue, and that Trump's name must be removed.

Zoom in: Yesterday's vote won't make Trump's name part of the complex. Instead, an inscription will go below the Kennedy Center sign that reads "Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump."

• The physical site would become "the President Donald J. Trump Plaza."
• The decision is likely meant to circumvent both the judge's ruling and a federal law that oversees the Kennedy Center, which reads in part, "no additional memorials or plaques in the nature of memorials shall be designated or installed in the public areas."

🔨 Zoom out: With Trump in attendance, the board also approved renovation plans, two sources told Axios.

• They went with a two-year construction timeline that'll shutter the main building and allow programming at the REACH, an indoor-outdoor space where the National Symphony Orchestra might perform some events, as previously reported in our scoop of the plans.

What's next: The plans will be submitted to a federal judge for review.

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🪼 Jellyfish are all over Maryland and Delaware beaches, thanks in part to warmer ocean temps. It's gotten so bad that many people are skipping the water. Over 3,000 first aid incidents were reported last week. (Capital Weather)

🍣 Ned's Club could do a lot to improve the food — and the "inconsistent or absent" service, Tom Sietsema says in his new review. Some things are "fair" (sushi, dumplings) while others "sodden and cloying" (like the Brussels sprouts). All at a place where dues run $5K. (NOTUS)

🍃 When Virginia's new restrictions on THC in hemp products take effect starting tomorrow, products that retailers have spent three years legally selling under state rules will become illegal overnight. (Axios)

Sushi, fluffy Japanese cakes and soft serve — one new Bethesda spot promises all three.

Why it matters: Family-owned Sushi Masato and The One Cake want to become a neighborhood destination for Japanese comfort food and sweets.

Dig in: Chef Raymond Yu spent the past 15 years at some of the area's most-loved sushi counters, including Michelin-starred Sushi Nakazawa, neighborhood favorite Raku and (RIP) Woodmont Grill.

• His menu borrows a little from each: seasonal fish and overflowing chirashi bowls alongside creative rolls like crispy coconut shrimp, plus cooked favorites including miso black cod and slow-simmered beef gyudon.

🍦 In the meantime, restaurant diners get a free soft serve through August.

Dessert menu

A heartfelt new movie out today on Netflix was inspired by a local screenwriter's days as a high school musical star in D.C.

Why it matters: The coming-of-age dramedy "Don't Say Good Luck" stars Sunny Sandler — aka Adam Sandler's daughter — and is produced by the Sandman himself.

• It also stars big names like Melanie Lynskey, Max Greenfield and Steve Buscemi.

State of play: The film follows Sophie Birenbaum, a high school girl (played by Sandler), as she deals with the simultaneous highs and lows of scoring the lead in her school's production of the musical "Waitress" while her mom is battling cancer.

What they're saying: The story was inspired by the co-screenwriter and D.C. native Laura Hankin's own experience: She landed the lead in the then-Woodrow Wilson High School's production of "Moby Dick! The Musical" right when her own mother became sick.

• "It was really hard to know how to deal with it and how to find the balance of it all," Hankin tells Axios — an experience she says she didn't fully start processing until she wrote the screenplay years later.

Zoom in: Some scenes are inspired by places Hankin once hung out.

• Think Guapo's or Montgomery and Tysons malls.

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