Washington D.C. attorney general sues to stop federal takeover of police department

WASHINGTON, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Washington, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb said Friday he has filed a lawsuit challenging U.S. President Donald Trump's attempt to take control of the district's police department.

Schwalb said the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, aims to get the court to rule that Trump's takeover of the city's police department is illegal.

Trump said on Monday he was deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the city's police department to curb what he has depicted as a crime emergency in the U.S. capital, though statistics show incidents of violent crime have dropped.