Pennsylvania House GOP to File Articles of Impeachment against Progressive Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner

Pennsylvania House Republicans are expected to file articles of impeachment for negligence of duty against progressive Philadelphia district attorney Larry Krasner on Wednesday after accusing him of fueling a historic crime surge in the city with his lax law enforcement policies.

A press conference announcing the articles will be held on Wednesday morning, NBC Philadelphia reported.

The development comes after the Pennsylvania House committee investigating Krasner’s job performance published a report arguing that his weak leadership contributed to the spike in violent crime, including fatal shootings and carjackings, plaguing the city. However, the report fell short of recommending Krasner’s impeachment, pending further analysis and deliberation, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Krasner has argued that he should not be held responsible for crimes he did not perpetrate, but the committee noted that he is likely liable for administrative misconduct in applying a lenient approach to offenders who entered the criminal justice system.

“[M]ost troubling to the Select Committee is what happens after arrests are made — the DAO’s prosecution, or lack thereof,” the report said. It noted that so far this year, 65 percent of violent offenses, including homicides, non-fatal shootings, rapes, robberies, and assaults were either discarded by Krasner’s office or thrown out by the court. That number represents a significant departure from how such crimes were treated as recently as 2016, when 48 percent of those crimes were tossed out. Additionally, in 2020, guilty verdicts in cases decreased from 88 percent in 2015 to 66 percent in 2020, the report noted.

Instances in which the police decline to arrest a suspected criminal also increased during Krasner’s tenure. The report cited an assessment by the Delaware Valley Intelligence Center that found that there was an increase in the percentage of declinations of arrests across multiple crimes “especially in 2018,” when Krasner assumed the role.

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Former assistant district attorneys in Krasner’s office have testified that his policies “created an environment in which ADAs struggled to perform their job duties—both due to the lack of any meaningful training and the immediate and continued elimination of institutional knowledge,” the committee wrote.

Republican committee chair John Lawrence said Monday that the committee’s probe would be ongoing as the panel gathers all the information.

Krasner is part of the wave of progressive prosecutors who have risen to power in major cities in recent years. Republican senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz has called out his opponent, former Braddock mayor John Fetterman, for continuing to support Krasner as Philadelphia descends into lawlessness.

“Under Larry Krasner’s failed leadership, Philadelphia has over 430 homicides just this year. John Fetterman stands behind Krasner and his soft-on-crime policies that have destroyed Philadelphia – we can’t afford more of the same,” Oz tweeted Sunday.

Earlier this month, Fetterman was asked, “is there a type of person in jail today who doesn’t deserve a second chance in your eyes?” The Democratic nominee struggled to answer but suggested that violent inmates who’ve been incarcerated for decades should still be given an opportunity to be rehabilitated if they have a record of good behavior.

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