Biden Judge Refuses to Jail Teens Who Attacked DOGE Worker

President Donald Trump and Elon Musk are slamming what they call a “travesty of justice” after a Biden-appointed judge spared two 15-year-olds convicted in the brutal assault of former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer Edward Coristine, known online as “Big Balls.”

On Tuesday, Associate Judge Kendra Briggs of the D.C. Superior Court sentenced the teens to probation rather than jail time, despite their guilty pleas in the August 2025 carjacking and beating that left Coristine hospitalized.

According to police, the pair—both 15—attacked Coristine and his companion during an attempted car theft in Washington’s Logan Circle neighborhood before fleeing. Authorities have only arrested two suspects out of the roughly ten involved in the assault.

Briggs sentenced the male defendant to 12 months of probation and home confinement, while the female received nine months in a youth shelter. Both are banned from D.C. except for school, work, or family needs.

Judge Briggs defended her decision, saying the goal of the juvenile system is “rehabilitation, not punishment.”

That explanation didn’t sit well with Trump. Speaking outside the White House, the president blasted the verdict as part of a broader collapse of law and order in the nation’s capital.

“They beat the hell out of this guy — many people against one man who was trying to protect his girlfriend,” Trump said. “Wow, that’s terrible. I think the judge should be ashamed of herself. That’s a big problem.”

Trump noted that D.C. remains under federal control, reiterating his call to “federalize the city” after a spike in violent crime. He has already deployed National Guard troops across the capital and signaled that similar actions may be taken in Democrat-run cities like Chicago and Portland.

Elon Musk, DOGE’s former director and current CEO of Tesla and X, was equally furious.

“This was a racist verdict by a racist judge,” Musk posted on X. “If the races were reversed, the white kids would be in prison. Equal justice for all!”

Coristine himself took to social media to decry the outcome, writing:

“They’ve only caught two out of the ten. Eight are still on the street. That night could’ve gone far differently. Think of your daughters and mothers. This same group attacked people before and after us — breaking ribs and stomping heads. This senseless crime must be stopped.”

Conservative voices online erupted in outrage.

The MAGA Voice account declared:

“Elon Musk just called Judge Kendra Briggs a ‘R*cist Judge’ for letting the thugs who jumped Big Balls walk free. THIS JUDGE SHOULD BE DISBARRED. I AGREE WITH ELON.”

Libs of TikTok echoed the frustration:

“BREAKING: Judge Kendra Briggs, a Biden appointee, gives NO jail time to the teens responsible for brutally attacking DOGE employee ‘Big Balls.’ Instead — probation. Her goal? To ‘rehabilitate, not punish.’”

On The Charlie Kirk Show, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reinforced the administration’s stance:

“One of the big issues in D.C. is these juveniles just get a slap on the wrist. This administration has a completely different philosophy — we need law and order.”

The Trump administration has prioritized restoring safety in America’s cities, but its deployment of federal troops has drawn resistance from Democratic governors and mayors, who claim the actions infringe on local authority — even as violent crime spikes under their watch.

For Trump and his allies, this case underscores a deeper problem: soft-on-crime policies that protect criminals over victims. And with Coristine’s attackers walking free, many Americans are asking how many more innocent people must suffer before justice is restored.