A federal judge in Philadelphia referred District Attorney Larry Krasner and Assistant District Attorney Matthew Stiegler to the Justice Department on Tuesday for a formal investigation into potential legal violations.
The referral stems from actions taken by the prosecutors while seeking to vacate a 2009 murder conviction in federal court.
U.S. District Judge Paul Diamond ordered both prosecutors removed immediately from any further involvement in the court proceedings.
The judicial order followed evidentiary hearing testimony revealing internal conflict over handling the post-conviction relief petition.
Summarizing his conclusions after reviewing the hearing evidence, U.S. District Judge Paul Diamond wrote that he “reluctantly concluded that Philadelphia’s highest law enforcement official and one of his top assistants may have violated the law”.
Court records established that staff members in the district attorney office who voiced conflict of interest concerns regarding Assistant District Attorney Matthew Stiegler were subjected to an internal pressure campaign.
Employees who raised internal objections during case deliberations were explicitly warned by superiors that they could face severe professional consequences.
Following the review of staff testimony, U.S. District Judge Paul Diamond determined that prosecutor conduct may have amounted to perjury, obstruction of justice, making false statements under oath, and conspiracy.
The underlying criminal case involved defendant Robert Johnson, who was found guilty of second-degree murder in 2009 for the 2007 shooting death of Kenyatta Smith during an attempted robbery.
Following his trial and conviction, Robert Johnson received a mandatory sentence of life in prison.
In 2022, District Attorney Larry Krasner filed a petition requesting the release of Robert Johnson, alleging ineffective trial counsel.
Responding directly to the judicial findings, District Attorney Larry Krasner stated, “I respectfully and vigorously disagree”.
Outlining the planned response from his office, District Attorney Larry Krasner added, “I look forward to appealing to the higher court as soon as the law allows”.