PHILADELPHIA — Lawyers for Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner urged Commonwealth Court judges Thursday to declare the ongoing impeachment drive against him legally baseless, saying the Republican-led effort in Harrisburg was a dangerous attempt to remove a locally elected Democrat over ideological disagreements — and not impeachable conduct.
During a virtual hearing Thursday morning, Krasner’s attorneys called the impeachment effort a “profound distraction” for the city’s top prosecutor and his office, and said judicial intervention was required to halt what they view as a process marked by several fundamental flaws. Krasner is scheduled to be tried by the state Senate next month.
“The stakes could not be greater,” said John S. Summers. What GOP lawmakers are seeking, Summers added, “is not only the erasure of votes and elections, but they are asking for a rule that says any time the majority party doesn’t like the policies of (another) party, we’ll go impeach the guy, and we can get a trial. ... That is a constitutional crisis. That is an invitation to chaos.”
