Feds Subpoena Soros-Backed Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner

Federal grand jury subpoenas have been issued to the office of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, stemming from a referral to the Department of Justice over allegations of criminal misconduct. A source familiar with the matter indicated the subpoenas are connected to potential obstruction of justice, perjury, and conspiracy charges related to the relitigation of a 2009 murder case. It remains unclear if Krasner himself or one of his deputies, Matthew Stiegler, who is implicated in the case, received the subpoenas. Fox News was the first to report on this federal inquiry.

The investigation gained momentum in November 2022 when Krasner's office initiated a petition to release Dennis Johnson, who had been convicted of second-degree murder. The office argued Johnson had received inadequate legal counsel. However, by June of this year, Krasner's office moved to withdraw this petition, citing "material misstatements." According to testimony from one of the assistant district attorneys involved, Krasner and Stiegler allegedly attempted to attribute these misstatements to a former assistant district attorney, Jaclyn Mason, who has since resigned.

During discussions about referring the matter to the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General (OAG), line prosecutors recounted Krasner stating that they "can't send it to OAG because essentially they're all evil" and that "we have to have somebody in the room, in the courtroom to protect the office." In a memo, a judge, identified as Diamond, wrote that after hearing testimony, he "reluctantly concluded that Philadelphia's highest law enforcement official and one of his top assistants may have violated the law."

Krasner, who is currently serving his third term, was initially elected in 2017 with significant financial backing from a political action committee supported by George Soros. Representatives for Krasner did not respond to requests for comment.