More than 500 Philadelphians were killed for the second consecutive year under George Soros-backed district attorney Larry Krasner (D.), a murder rate not seen since 1990.
The Philadelphia Police Department recorded 502 murders as of Tuesday, down just 7 percent from last year. Pennsylvania lawmakers impeached Krasner in November for failing to prosecute violent offenders, which they say led to a record-high 562 homicides in 2021.
Krasner, like many Soros prosecutors, refuses to charge low-level offenders, a policy that has led to high recidivism rates. Los Angeles district attorney George Gascón (D.), who received millions of dollars from Soros, and now-ousted San Francisco prosecutor Chesa Boudin both oversaw a rise in violent crime in their jurisdictions last year. The liberal billionaire donated $1.7 million to Krasner’s first campaign in 2017.
The majority of murders in Philadelphia this year were from shootings. Seventy-eight percent of the victims were black, according to city data.
Krasner has exonerated dozens of felons who he says were wrongfully convicted through a special unit in his office. One of those felons in October was charged with another homicide after his release.
Krasner’s office did not respond to a request for comment. In December, he asked a state court to throw out the impeachment on procedural grounds. Krasner has painted the Republican-led effort as an attempt to subvert the democratic process, saying it is part of a national GOP push to "undo elections."
One of the Pennsylvania House impeachment managers said on Monday that Krasner’s response to the impeachment "is illustrative of how he conducts himself in office."
"He argues he cannot be impeached by the General Assembly. Under the Pennsylvania Constitution, that is patently false," said Rep. Craig Williams (R.). "He argues he has committed no misbehavior in office. Yet, he and his office have lied to a grand jury, the courts, and victims. So, that claim is also patently false."
The articles of impeachment say Krasner failed to prosecute violent offenders, withheld relevant facts in cases, and violated victims’ rights. Specifically, they note his failure to give a police officer a fair trial, his failure to notify a victim’s family when he reduced a convicted murderer’s sentence, and his failure to disclose a conflict of interest involving a known cop-killer who recently appealed his life sentence.
The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate is prepared to take up seven articles of impeachment in the new year. A two-thirds vote will be needed to remove Krasner, meaning at least six Democrats must vote to convict.