Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner successfully dodged an impeachment attempt that was initiated by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2022. The state Supreme Court ruled that the impeachment effort against Krasner had expired with the legislative session of that year.
“The impeachment effort of DA Krasner is dead, null, void, over,” declared John Summers, Krasner’s attorney, after the ruling. This final decision means that there will be no Senate trial on the charges of misconduct in office brought against Krasner.
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The Supreme Court’s ruling, coupled with a January 2023 opinion from a Commonwealth Court panel that deemed the impeachment allegations unconstitutional, marked a double victory for Krasner according to Summers.
Summers emphasized the significance of the court’s decision in upholding democracy and respecting the will of the voters who elected Krasner by significant margins in two separate elections. He criticized the impeachment as an attempt by non-Philadelphia legislators to intervene and overturn the votes of Philadelphia residents.
State Rep. Craig Williams, R-Delaware, who led the impeachment effort in the House, acknowledged that while the Supreme Court had dismissed the impeachment, the substantive allegations in the articles remained unresolved.
Krasner, known for his progressive criminal justice policies, faced backlash for his approach and was targeted by Republicans in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder in 2020. The articles of impeachment accused Krasner of dereliction of duty, failure to enforce the law, obstructing the investigation into his office, and various other violations.
In her opinion, Judge Ellen Ceisler of the Commonwealth Court pointed out that the House’s objections to Krasner’s actions did not meet the constitutional standard required for impeachment and removal from office.
Summers highlighted the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the state constitution, which mandates that impeachment proceedings initiated in one session of the General Assembly must be followed by a trial in the Senate of the same session.
According to Chief Justice Debra Todd, the powers granted to the House and Senate are limited to the duration of the legislative session. The House had approved the articles of impeachment in November 2022, but the case was not resolved before the end of the legislative session.
The majority opinion of the Supreme Court underscored the constitutional limitations on carrying over unfinished matters from one session to the next, preventing the House and Senate from taking further action on incomplete business.
The ruling, supported by a majority of the court justices, affirmed Krasner’s victory and put an end to the impeachment threat looming over him. Justice Sallie Mundy issued a separate opinion dissenting in part, while Justices Kevin Dougherty and Kevin Brobson did not participate in the decision.