Larry Krasner

Larry Krasner
Born	1/8/1961
Birthplace	St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Education	University of Chicago (BA) Stanford Law School (JD)

Lawrence Samuel Krasner (born January 8, 1961) is an American attorney and politician serving as the Philadelphia District Attorney since January 2018. A lifelong civil rights and criminal defense lawyer who spent three decades representing protesters, death row inmates, and citizens in police misconduct cases, Krasner won a surprise victory in the 2017 Democratic primary on a platform of sweeping criminal justice reform, then won the general election by a wide margin in the heavily Democratic city. His tenure has been defined by a willingness to decline prosecution of low-level offenses, hold police officers accountable, and confront federal immigration enforcement, positions that have made him one of the most polarizing figures in American law enforcement. Krasner is widely regarded as the last of the so-called "progressive prosecutors" elected during the late 2010s reform wave still holding office, after similar district attorneys in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Chicago were recalled or voted out of office.

Early life

Larry Krasner was born on January 8, 1961, in St. Louis, Missouri. His father was an academic who taught Russian at the University of Pennsylvania, and his mother was also a teacher. The family relocated to the Philadelphia area when Krasner was young so that his father could take up his university position. Krasner has described growing up in a household shaped by intellectual curiosity and the social upheaval of the 1960s, with both parents holding progressive views on race and civil liberties.

Krasner grew up in the Philadelphia suburbs and attended public schools. He has spoken in interviews about witnessing racial tensions in the city during the Frank Rizzo era, experiences he has cited as formative in shaping his views on policing and justice.

Education

Krasner attended the University of Chicago, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. The university's rigorous intellectual culture and tradition of political engagement left a lasting impression; Krasner has credited his time there with sharpening his ability to argue from first principles.

He went on to earn his Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School. At Stanford, Krasner developed an interest in public interest law and constitutional litigation, gravitating toward professors and clinical programs focused on criminal defense and civil rights. After graduating, rather than pursuing the corporate law career that Stanford credentials typically afforded, Krasner returned to Philadelphia to practice as a defense attorney.

Legal career

Civil rights and defense work

For roughly 30 years before entering electoral politics, Krasner built a career as a civil rights attorney and criminal defense lawyer in Philadelphia. He represented a wide array of clients, including Black Lives Matter activists, Occupy Wall Street protesters, members of ACT UP, and individuals facing capital punishment. His client list also included MOVE members and war protesters arrested during demonstrations against the Iraq War.

A defining feature of Krasner's legal career was his willingness to sue the Philadelphia Police Department. Over his three decades in private practice, Krasner filed approximately 75 lawsuits against the department, alleging police brutality, false arrest, civil rights violations, and other misconduct. He won or settled many of these cases, securing significant payouts for plaintiffs and establishing a reputation within the city's legal community as one of the most aggressive litigators against law enforcement misconduct. His adversarial relationship with the police department would later become a central issue in both his campaigns and his tenure as district attorney.

Krasner also represented clients in death penalty cases and took on numerous pro bono matters. He was a vocal critic of the war on drugs, mandatory minimum sentencing, and cash bail, positions that placed him well outside the mainstream of Philadelphia's legal establishment for much of his career.

Death penalty litigation

Throughout his career in private practice, Krasner was a consistent opponent of capital punishment. He represented multiple individuals on death row in Pennsylvania, arguing ineffective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial misconduct, and constitutional violations in their sentencing proceedings. His work in this area contributed to several commutations and retrials. Krasner's opposition to the death penalty would carry directly into his time as district attorney, where he implemented a de facto moratorium on seeking death sentences in new cases.

Philadelphia District Attorney

2017 election

Krasner entered the 2017 Democratic primary for Philadelphia District Attorney in a crowded field of seven candidates. His campaign was premised on a comprehensive reform agenda: ending cash bail for nonviolent offenses, declining to prosecute marijuana possession, reducing mass incarceration, and holding police officers accountable for misconduct. The candidacy was initially dismissed by the city's political establishment, which viewed a career defense attorney who had sued the police dozens of times as an implausible district attorney.

A significant factor in the race was the intervention of a political action committee funded by billionaire financier George Soros. The Philadelphia Justice & Public Safety PAC spent approximately $1.7 million on advertisements and voter outreach supporting Krasner's candidacy, a sum that dwarfed the spending of his opponents. The Soros-funded spending became a lasting point of criticism from Krasner's opponents on both the right and, at times, within the Democratic Party. Krasner won the primary with approximately 38 percent of the vote in the seven-way race and went on to win the November general election with over 74 percent, consistent with Philadelphia's heavily Democratic electorate.

First term (2018-2022)

Krasner took office on January 2, 2018, and moved immediately to implement his reform agenda. Within his first weeks, he fired 31 prosecutors from the district attorney's office, a mass dismissal that was unprecedented in Philadelphia history and drew national attention. Krasner characterized the firings as necessary to remove prosecutors who were unwilling to carry out his policy directives, while critics called the move destabilizing and politically motivated.

He then issued a series of sweeping policy memoranda directing his assistant district attorneys to decline prosecution of certain categories of offenses, including marijuana possession, prostitution, and other low-level crimes. The memos also instructed prosecutors to make plea offers below sentencing guidelines in many cases and to consider the cost of incarceration when making charging decisions. The latter directive, which asked prosecutors to calculate the taxpayer cost of the prison time they sought, was particularly controversial and was cited by both supporters (as a humane innovation) and critics (as an abdication of public safety).

During his first term, Krasner's office also established a Conviction Integrity Unit that reviewed past cases for wrongful convictions. The unit exonerated multiple individuals who had spent years or decades in prison.

Krasner's first term coincided with a sharp increase in gun violence across American cities, and Philadelphia was hit particularly hard. The city's homicide count rose from 353 in 2019 to 499 in 2020 and peaked at 562 in 2021, the highest figure in the city's modern history. Critics, including the Fraternal Order of Police and Republican state legislators, attributed the violence surge directly to Krasner's policies. Krasner and his supporters countered that the spike was a nationwide phenomenon driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, economic dislocation, and the disruption of social services, and that progressive prosecution policies were not the cause.

2021 reelection

Despite the homicide crisis, Krasner won the 2021 Democratic primary with approximately 65 percent of the vote, defeating challenger Carlos Vega, a former homicide prosecutor in the DA's office whom Krasner had fired. He won the general election in November by an even wider margin. The decisive reelection was seen as a strong endorsement of his reform agenda by Philadelphia's electorate, even amid rising violence.

Republican impeachment effort (2022)

In November 2022, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, then controlled by Republicans, voted to impeach Krasner on charges of "misbehavior in office." The articles of impeachment alleged that Krasner's policies had contributed to Philadelphia's homicide surge and that he had obstructed a legislative investigation. The effort was led by rural and suburban Republican legislators; no Philadelphia-area Republican representatives supported it.

Krasner and his allies denounced the impeachment as a partisan attack by lawmakers who had no jurisdiction over a locally elected official and who represented constituents hundreds of miles from Philadelphia. Legal scholars and civil liberties organizations raised constitutional objections, arguing that the legislature was attempting to override the democratic choice of Philadelphia's voters.

The Pennsylvania Senate never held a trial. In early 2023, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled that the impeachment proceedings were unconstitutional, effectively ending the effort. Krasner emerged from the episode politically strengthened, having survived what he characterized as an unprecedented attempt by one party's state legislators to remove a duly elected local prosecutor of the opposing party.

Second and third terms

Krasner won a third term as district attorney in 2025, further consolidating his political position in the city. His current term runs through January 2030.

By his second and third terms, the central criticism leveled against Krasner during his first term, that his policies had fueled a homicide epidemic, had been substantially undermined by the data. Philadelphia's homicide count fell from the 2021 peak of 562 to approximately 220 in 2025, a decline of more than 60 percent and the lowest figure the city had recorded since 1966. Krasner and his supporters pointed to the decline as vindication of his approach, arguing that progressive prosecution, combined with community-based violence intervention programs and diversion initiatives, had contributed to the improvement. Critics maintained that the decline was part of a national trend and that Krasner's policies had, at best, failed to prevent the initial spike.

Policies and reforms

Declination of low-level offenses

One of Krasner's signature policies has been the systematic declination of prosecution for certain categories of offenses deemed low-level. His office has declined to prosecute simple marijuana possession, sex work by consenting adults, and other minor charges, arguing that these prosecutions waste resources, disproportionately harm communities of color, and do nothing to improve public safety.

Cash bail reform

Krasner's office has pushed to reduce or eliminate cash bail for nonviolent offenses, arguing that the system punishes poverty and leads to unnecessary pretrial detention. His prosecutors have been directed to request minimal or no bail for defendants charged with nonviolent offenses, a policy that has significantly reduced the population of the city's jails.

Police accountability

Given his background in police misconduct litigation, Krasner's approach to police accountability has been a central feature of his tenure. His office has prosecuted police officers for on-duty misconduct at a rate far exceeding that of his predecessors, and he has maintained a "do not call" list of officers whose credibility has been impeached, effectively barring them from testifying in criminal cases.

Conviction integrity

The Conviction Integrity Unit established under Krasner has reviewed hundreds of past cases and secured the exoneration of numerous individuals found to have been wrongfully convicted. Several of these cases involved individuals who had served decades in prison. The unit's work has been cited as one of the most productive conviction review programs in the country.

Controversies

Relationship with police

Krasner's relationship with the Philadelphia Police Department and the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 has been consistently adversarial. The FOP has opposed Krasner since before his first election and has blamed his policies for undermining officer morale, increasing crime, and endangering the public. Krasner has accused the FOP of resisting accountability and obstructing reform. The mutual antagonism has been a defining feature of his tenure and has occasionally complicated cooperation between the DA's office and the police department on active cases.

ICE confrontations (2026)

In early 2026, Krasner became a nationally prominent figure in the resistance to the Trump administration's expanded immigration enforcement operations. When ICE agents conducted operations at Philadelphia International Airport and other locations in the city, Krasner publicly called ICE agents "wannabe Nazis" and threatened to have them arrested if they violated Pennsylvania law during enforcement actions.

The remarks drew praise from progressive activists and immigrant rights organizations, and fierce criticism from Republican officials and some moderate Democrats. Krasner's office followed through on the rhetoric to a degree, issuing guidance to city law enforcement agencies that they were not to assist ICE in civil immigration enforcement and that DA investigators would monitor ICE operations for potential state law violations. The confrontation elevated Krasner's national profile significantly and was covered extensively in both national and international media.

Feud with Governor Shapiro

Krasner has had a contentious relationship with Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who served as the state's Attorney General before being elected governor in 2022. The two Democrats have clashed publicly on criminal justice policy, with Shapiro taking a more moderate stance on policing and prosecution. Shapiro was critical of Krasner during the homicide surge of 2020-2021 and declined to defend Krasner during the impeachment proceedings, a decision Krasner's allies viewed as a betrayal. The feud has continued into Shapiro's governorship, with disagreements over state funding for Philadelphia public safety programs and the governor's support for certain law enforcement initiatives that Krasner has opposed.

Soros funding criticism

The $1.7 million in spending by the Soros-funded PAC during Krasner's 2017 primary campaign has remained a persistent line of attack. Republican officials and conservative media have frequently invoked Krasner as an example of what they describe as Soros's effort to install progressive prosecutors nationwide. Krasner has pushed back against this framing, noting that he won his primary, both reelections, and survived impeachment, arguing that his mandate comes from Philadelphia's voters, not from any single donor.

Personal life

Krasner is a resident of Philadelphia. He has been described by colleagues and journalists as intense, confrontational in professional settings, and deeply committed to his policy positions. He is known for his direct and sometimes combative public speaking style, a characteristic that has both energized his supporters and alienated potential allies.

Krasner has spoken publicly about the influence of his parents, both educators, on his worldview, and has cited the experience of growing up in a city marked by deep racial and economic inequality as a driving force in his career. He is Jewish.

Recognition

Krasner's tenure has been the subject of extensive media coverage and academic study. The PBS documentary series Philly D.A., which premiered in 2021 on the PBS series Independent Lens, followed Krasner's first term in office over eight episodes and received widespread critical acclaim. The series was praised for its intimate portrayal of the political and institutional challenges facing reform-minded prosecutors.

Krasner has been profiled extensively in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Politico, and other national publications. He is frequently cited in academic discussions of prosecutorial discretion, criminal justice reform, and the role of elected prosecutors in shaping public policy.

By 2026, Krasner's status as the last major progressive prosecutor of the 2017-2019 wave still in office had become a subject of national commentary. After the recall of Chesa Boudin in San Francisco in 2022, the defeat of Kim Foxx's chosen successor in Chicago, and the recall of George Gascón in Los Angeles in 2024, Krasner remained the sole prominent survivor of the movement, a fact he has acknowledged with characteristic bluntness.

2028 Senate speculation

Beginning in late 2025 and accelerating through 2026, political commentators and Democratic activists have discussed Krasner as a potential challenger to incumbent U.S. Senator John Fetterman in the 2028 Democratic primary. Fetterman, who won his Senate seat in 2022 as a progressive populist, has moved sharply to the right during his time in office, breaking with the Democratic caucus on immigration, supporting certain Trump administration nominees, and publicly feuding with progressive members of his own party. Fetterman's evolution has generated intense frustration among the state's progressive base, particularly in Philadelphia, where Democratic primary turnout is concentrated.

Krasner's profile fits several criteria that Democratic strategists have identified as necessary for a viable primary challenge. He has high name recognition in Philadelphia, the state's largest reservoir of Democratic votes. His record provides a "vindication narrative": he survived a partisan impeachment attempt, won three elections, and presided over a historic decline in violent crime. His confrontational stance against ICE in 2026 resonated with a Democratic primary electorate that has grown increasingly hostile to what it perceives as Fetterman's accommodation of the Trump administration's agenda. Krasner's combative public style and unapologetic progressivism present a sharp contrast with Fetterman's ideological repositioning.

Notably, Krasner's term as district attorney does not expire until January 2030, meaning he could mount a Senate campaign without giving up his current office. As of early 2026, Krasner has not publicly confirmed or denied interest in a Senate bid, though allies have described him as "not discouraging" the speculation. Political analysts have cautioned that while Krasner would be a formidable candidate in Philadelphia, a statewide Democratic primary would require significant support in the Pittsburgh media market and the state's suburban counties, areas where his progressive prosecution record could be a more difficult sell.