When veteran civil rights lawyer Larry Krasner sought the Democrat nomination for District Attorney of Philadelphia, he reportedly had the financial backing of progressive billionaire George Soros. Krasner, who has sued the Philadelphia Police Department approximately 75 times, seemed an unlikely candidate. But a $1.2 million contribution from Soros made Krasner unbeatable. Never before had a candidate for District Attorney had this much cash to take care of the ward leaders, the advertising and all the other expenses of a traditionally low voter turn out race.
Krasner won the Democrat primary (the only poltical contest that counts in Philadelphia) and went on to defeat a well-qualified veteran prosecutor in the general election.
During the election campaign, I wrote in the Philadelphia Inquirer that Krasner was not ideologically suited to be District Attorney. In that piece, I took issue with his claims that Philadelphia prosecutors were routinely hiding exculpatory evidence, lying to judges and “forcing witnesses to say things they don’t want to say” to obtain convictions. He promised that, if elected, he would bring about a “culture change” in the District Attorney’s Office by firing a substantial number of prosecutors. And, he threatened, “A lot of them are going to get locked up and charged.”
Shortly after being sworn in as District Attorney, Krasner unceremoniously fired 31 prosecutors. When asked for an explanation, he told KYW-TV – in an apparent reference to his transition team – that “we vetted (sic) judges, we vetted (sic) defense lawyers and we vetted (sic) a lot of prosecutors before we came to the conclusion that this particular group of people were better served working somewhere else.”
Regarding that group, he said, “For some, there may be a record for ethical (sic) activity, for others there may be a lack of diligence and hard work, for others there may be a lack of competition, smarts, ability to persuade a jury.”
In other words, according to Krasner, he rid the office of a lot of bums and dead weight. Which brings us to the strange – but by no means isolated – case of former Assistant District Attorney Mark Gilson.
In 1987, Gilson joined the District Attorney’s Office and spent 20 years in the homicide unit where he prosecuted 215 murder cases and achieved a 94% conviction rate. Like many members of that unit, he worked 12 to 15 hour days, going to crime scenes, prepping witnesses, and providing emotional support to the victims’ families and loved ones. In one notable case, he appeared in court on a Monday morning to sum up to the jury. This was remarkable because, on the preceding Saturday, his mother had tragically died in a fire. But, with no one else able to step in on short notice, he did his duty and finished the trial. Only then did he turn to the sorrowful task of arranging for his mother’s funeral.
In another case, Gilson’s wife miscarried in the middle of trial. Again, though he was needed at home, he never broke stride and saw the case through to the end.
On another occasion, he re-investigated the case of a young man who had been sentenced to 100 years in prison for attempted murder. After concluding that the defendant was not guilty, he joined with defense counsel in having the charges dismissed.
He has never been the subject of proceedings before the lawyers’ disciplinary board and has never been accused of hiding evidence from defense counsel. And, if that’s not good enough, his last sick day was in 1993.
I could go on, but you get the idea: Gilson doesn’t fit the profile put out by Krasner. So why was he fired?
Years ago, when Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane declined to bring corruption charges against six Philadelphia public officials, former District Attorney Seth Williams stepped in and filed criminal complaints against them. He then assigned the prosecution of those politically explosive cases to Gilson. When Gilson protested that he was a homicide prosecutor and had never handled a political corruption matter, Williams ordered him to take on the cases explaining that he was the “best prosecutor” in the office.
Under Gilson’s expert lawyering, state representatives Ronald Waters, Harold James, Michelle Brownlee, Louise Bishop, and Traffic Court Judge Thomasine Tynes – all Philadelphia Democrats – pled guilty to corruption charges. State Representative Vanessa Brown, another Philadelphia Democrat, at first agreed to plead guilty but then decided to go to trial. Her case has been continued 24 times and is still pending.
Which raises some interesting questions.
Was Gilson’s prosecution of the Philadelphia Democrats a factor in the decision to force him out? Was Gilson a victim of good old Philadelphia political payback?
Or was Gilson fired because he didn’t fit in with Krasner’s plans for a kinder, gentler District Attorney’s Office? And what about the other 30 fired prosecutors? Were they forced out because they didn’t fit Krasner’s new, progressive mold?
If the latter, what will that office become? Will it remain an effective law enforcement agency or will it join the ranks of badge wearing social justice agencies like the Baltimore States Attorney’s Office?
With Soros reportedly funding district attorney races elsewhere, what is happening in Philadelphia may be coming to a city or county near you.
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