Lawyer Charged with Felony Assault for Allegedly Spitting on National Guard Soldiers in Washington DC during Trump’s Crime Crackdown

A legal practitioner, Scott Pichon, has been taken into custody on charges of felony assault, following an alleged spitting incident involving two soldiers from the South Carolina Army National Guard. The incident took place in Washington D.C., where the soldiers were deployed as part of a security initiative led by President Donald Trump.

According to a statement of facts submitted to court by an FBI agent, Pichon approached the soldiers on a scooter near Union Station on Friday afternoon. It is alleged that he made a sound suggestive of coughing and proceeded to spit a combination of saliva and mucus towards them, with some of the mixture landing on one soldier’s face and the other’s neck.

The arrest was made by a deputy US marshal on Tuesday, based on a federal warrant. A security camera is said to have recorded the incident. As of Tuesday evening, no legal representation for Pichon was listed in court records.

This charge comes amidst Trump’s intensified efforts to combat crime in Washington D.C., which began earlier this month with his assumption of control over the city’s police department and the deployment of the DC National Guard. Six Republican-led states, including South Carolina, have since activated their National Guard troops to aid federal law enforcement in the nation’s capital.

Last week, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth ordered troops to begin carrying weapons. The president has expressed concerns over rising crime rates in D.C., although statistics show a decrease in crime this year compared to 2024.

Trump’s actions have been met with widespread disapproval among Washington residents, according to a poll conducted by The Washington Post-Schar School. Approximately 80% of the city’s population oppose Trump’s decision to take control of the city’s police department, as well as his deployment of the National Guard and FBI for patrol duties.

Earlier this month, another individual, Sean Charles Dunn, was arrested and charged with felony assault for reportedly throwing a sandwich at a US Customs and Border Protection officer. Dunn, who previously worked at the Justice Department and was subsequently dismissed following the incident, is said to have shouted at the officer, “I don’t want you in my city!”.