Metropolitan Police Department Chief Peter Newsham has had a rocky past couple of days. He was recently added to a civil rights lawsuit over the clearing of peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square on June 1 ahead of President Donald Trump’s infamous photo-op.

Newsham originally said MPD was not involved in the tear gassing and violent clashes between officers and demonstrators. But new video evidence appears to show otherwise. The ACLU-DC and other legal organizations added Newsham to their lawsuit based on the footage.

Then At-Large Councilmember David Grosso, a vocal critic of D.C.’s top cop (he cast the only vote against Newsham’s confirmation in 2017), renewed his demand for Newsham’s resignation.

Yesterday, Mayor Muriel Bowser said she has no intentions of firing the chief of police.

“He’s leaving the Council,” Bowser said of Grosso. “He has a few more months, and I wouldn’t want to see him use this lame duck period to make the District less safe.”

Newsham compared Grosso to Trump for his opposition to people who disagree with him. “Apparently I don’t think enough like him so he says I need to be fired,” Newsham said. “I think there’s a guy at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue who acts the same way. It’s either my way or the highway.”

Read Grosso’s letter calling for Newsham’s job here.

On a separate note, City Paper is looking into contact tracing. Have you tested positive for COVID-19 and received a call from one of the city’s contact tracers? Perhaps you were a close contact of someone who tested positive? Let Amanda Michelle Gomez (agomez@washingtoncitypaper.com) know about your experience! You do not have to be named in the article.       

—Mitch Ryals (tips? mryals@washingtoncitypaper.com)

CITY DESK LINKS, by Amanda Michelle Gomez (tips? agomez@washingtoncitypaper.com)  City Desk is taking a break. She’ll return on Monday.

LOOSE LIPS LINKS, by Mitch Ryals (tips? mryals@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

• Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton’s 30-year fight. [Post]

• Here are the D.C. developers who got PPP loans. [Twitter]

• Rep. Andy Harris will seek to stop a magic mushroom ballot measure in D.C. [NY Post, Washingtonian]

• D.C. Council pauses deadline to file for business interruption insurance. [WBJ]

• Police arrested 18-year-old Daryle Bond in the fatal shooting of 11-year-old Davon McNeal. [DCist, NBC]

• Ward 7 Councilmember Vince Gray is on The Politics Hour this afternoon. [Kojo]

YOUNG & HUNGRY LINKS, by Laura Hayes (tips? lhayes@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

• Pearl’s Bagels opens Saturday in Mount Vernon Square. [Eater DC]

• Restaurants are serving coronavirus-shaped dishes and desserts, including Alinea in Chicago.. [Post]

• Latinx people are boycotting Goya Foods after its CEO expressed support for Donald Trump. [Post]

ARTS LINKS, by Kayla Randall (tips? krandall@washingtoncitypaper.com)

• Palm Springs, now streaming on Hulu, is a timely, funny love story. [WCP]

• The Kennedy Center is producing new anti-racism programs and initiatives. [Washingtonian]

• 1st Stage is now offering online theater education courses in a virtual classroom. [DC Metro Theater Arts] 

SPORTS LINKS, by Kelyn Soong (tips? ksoong@washingtoncitypaper.com)

• The MLS is back, and D.C. United will take the field Sunday night against Toronto FC. [CBS Sports]

• After suggesting the local NFL’s new nickname should be the Hogs, City Paper contributor Matt Terl is changing course, arguing that it’s better for the franchise to sever all ties to its past. “Because if you give people any angle to not change, they won’t,” he writes. His new suggestion: the Washington Ocelots. [WCP]

• Thomas Bryant and Gary Payton II have both tested positive for COVID-19 and it’s unclear if or when they will join the Wizards in Orlando. [Bullets Forever]

• Citi Open (a tennis tournament managed by City Paper owner Mark Ein) will not host a women’s draw this year after the WTA opted to host a separate event in Lexington, Kentucky. [Tennis.com] 

CITY LIGHTS, by Emma Sarappo (Love this section? Get the full newsletter here. Tips? esarappo@washingtoncitypaper.com)

We’re bringing you the best things to watch, read, make, and do from the comfort of your home while social distancing.

• Jennifer Ackerman, the author of The Genius of Birds, is back with a new book, The Bird Way.

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