Good morning. This is The Washington Sun Metro newsletter for Sept. 28, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!
In today’s newsletter: Driverless car crashes, no verdict for Trayon White and MYSTICS TBD.
Capital Weather’s Daily Digit: 7/10. Mainly bright but breezy. Still, it’s plenty comfortable with temperatures up a handful of degrees from yesterday. Full forecast from Capital Weather.
THE LATEST
Trending
Autonomous vehicles have been test-driving around D.C. for years. DDOT won’t share how many times they’ve crashed.
The city has a rule against sharing AV-involved crash incidents through public records requests and hasn’t published the reports it promised to with that information. Federal data shows that AVs have been involved in 15 crashes in D.C. from July 2021 to August 2026, The Washington Sun’s Zara Norman reports.
Waymo — the U.S.’s largest AV company — reached out to The Sun to confirm that it has logged seven crash incidents since it began testing in 2024, with three minor injuries and three instances of property damage reported. Most of the events involved other drivers rear-ending Waymos while they slowed or stopped for traffic, or yielded to emergency vehicles, according to a spokesperson.
But only six of Waymo’s seven disclosed incidents show up on that federal database, which requires crashes to meet a certain reporting threshold, meaning that it is not a full accounting. The Sun has appealed to the mayor’s office for the city’s complete set of records ahead of the council’s vote this fall on whether to permit AVs here.
“The current mayoral administration has done little to move forward with the responsible deployment of fully autonomous vehicles, making it impossible for Washingtonians to benefit from the technology or understand how it is performing on their roads,” a Waymo spokesperson told The Sun.
Ward 6 council member Charles Allen, who chairs D.C.’s transportation committee, said his legislation allowing AVs would override the city’s statute barring the sharing of crash safety data and require companies to regularly disclose any incidents as well as other data points.
“There’s a value in proactively reporting information,” Allen told The Sun.
FROM THE COURTHOUSE
There’s still no verdict in the Trayon White bribery trial, The Sun’s Jenny Gathright reports. Jurors, who began deliberations on Wednesday, told U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras on Friday morning that they were unable to reach a unanimous conclusion as to White’s guilt or innocence.
White’s defense asked Contreras to declare a mistrial. Contreras said “in the grand scheme of things, it hasn’t been that long” and told the jury to keep trying. “I know it’s a difficult statute,” he said, referring to the law on bribery.
Prosecutors allege that the Ward 8 council member accepted illegal bribes in exchange for agreeing to help a D.C. contractor secure government contracts for anti-violence work. The contractor who paid White was working as an FBI informant, allowing authorities to secretly record his conversations with White during the summer of 2024.
White’s defense argued that while the lawmaker did accept $35,000 in cash payments from the contractor, he never actually intended to pressure government officials to extend those contracts. Some D.C. government officials testified that White had asked them about the contractor’s company, but none told the jury that White had actually pressured them or influenced the award process.
In order to prove that White committed bribery, prosecutors had to show that White actually intended to be influenced by the money that the informant gave him.
So what was White’s intention? The jury is clearly still out.
FROM THE DISTRICT
Power Hour: Hundreds gathered at a bitcoin-themed bar in D.C. this weekend to celebrate data centers, denouncing “bipartisan psychosis” around artificial intelligence over Loudoun County Iced Teas, The Sun’s Mara Hoplamazian and Emily Kennard report.
Kennedy Center officials were long aware of the structural issues they blamed for the storied arts building’s closure this month and delayed repairs, a group of anonymous former employees wrote in a letter to Congress, the Associated Press reports.
Lanes closures in the 9th Street Tunnel begin today, as part of construction that isn’t expected to be completed until June, WTOP reports.
FROM THE DINING ROOM
Tom Sietsema, The Sun’s food correspondent, dishes on a “deal of a meal.”
Earlier this month, the cozy Masala Art in Washington’s Tenleytown started serving thalis for lunch on Friday. I’m talking four small dishes — plus cooling raita, naan, rice and dessert — for a mere $22. Better yet, diners can choose from a meat or vegetarian sampler. The selections might include smoky mashed eggplant and grilled paneer tikka masala among the vegetable dishes and lamb korma and chicken tikka masala among the meaty items.
I admire the presentation as much as the food, which is “chef’s choice,” says owner Atul Bhola of the freshly made, ever-changing lineup. The dishes are set on little plates atop a semi-circular copper tray, one per grazer. It’s a lot of style for not a lot of dough. And it fills a wish for those who crave variety.
“It’s a buffet on your table,” says Bhola, who adds that second helpings are part of the bargain.
FROM “PERSPECTIVES”
It was once very cool to be super into “Hamilton,” then it got uncool, The Sun’s Anusha Mathur writes for our “Perspectives” section. Elanna Bellofatto, a spin class instructor in D.C., is staging a comeback with themed sessions inspired by the hit musical. Yes, she wears the wig.
“Perspectives” is The Sun’s platform for analysis, ideas and narratives.
TRIVIA
Who is the only U.S. president to attend college in D.C.?
- Bill Clinton
- Woodrow Wilson
- Jimmy Carter
Email us your answer — the first reader who gets it right will receive a shout-out at the end of tomorrow’s newsletter.
SPORTS
A disastrous third quarter doomed the Mystics in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series against the Dream, The Sun’s Emma Baccellieri reports from Atlanta. After leading for nearly the entire first half, they unraveled after the break, ultimately losing 92-77. The Mystics will host a do-or-die Game 2 on Wednesday.
The Commanders are back from the dead, metaphorically speaking, after stunning the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks yesterday, 33-31. With the win, and injured star QB Jayden Daniels being labeled week-to-week as opposed to done for the year following his gruesome elbow injury last week, there’s reason to believe this Commanders season could actually mean something, The Sun’s Dave Sheinin writes.
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The newsletter was produced by Jaden Amos, Jeff Dooley and Gaby Morera Di Núbila.
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