By Ralph Ciprianofor BigTrial.net
When he first hired 60 new assistant district attorneys back in September, D.A. Larry Krasner hailed them as an "incredibly bright group of new prosecutors" who constituted "the largest and most diverse class of ADAs ever hired by the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office."
Krasner said the new prosecutors that he had personally recruited were "fully committed to seeking justice for the people of Philadelphia." But besides being seekers of justice, Krasner also extolled the diversity of his new recruits.
"In order to effect real and lasting reform of our system of criminal justice, we must make sure they are inclusive and representative of the communities they serve," Krasner said. The new class of prosecutors, Krasner bragged, were "51 percent diverse." Many were from top law schools across the country as well as historically black colleges and universities. In addition, "more than half are women and 2 percent identify as non-binary," Krasner said, apparently meaning that some of the new ADAs weren't exclusively masculine or feminine. Another milestone for progressives.
The only problem was that in order to become full-fledged prosecutors, this incredibly diverse group of new ADAs had to pass the bar exam. And while 42 passed, 18 of the 60 new ADAs have apparently failed that test.
Back when he hired them, Krasner had high hopes for the new class of ADAs.
"Having personally recruited and reconnected with these new ADAs, I know a number of them once believed that working as a prosecutor meant becoming part of the problem of mass incarceration," Krasner said last September.But that was B.K., as in before Larry Krasner arrived in Philadelphia, to lead a national revolution.
"I'm hopeful that the work we at the DAO are doing to seek true justice for everyone and strengthen communities previously wrecked by mass incarceration will inspire more reform-minded attorneys to consider careers in criminal prosecution and join this fast-growing national movement to change the system from within," Krasner said.
While the national movement for true justice continues unabated, here in Philadelphia, it's uncertain what happens next for all those new ADAs who failed the bar exam.
Under former District Attorneys Lynne Abraham and R. Seth Williams, as well as interim D.A. Kelley Hodge, the hirings of new ADAs was contingent on passing the bar exam. Otherwise, with only a few exceptions, if the new ADAs didn't pass the bar exam, they were out.
If there was a paralegal spot open in the D.A.'s office, the D.A. could offer that spot to a new ADA who had just failed the bar exam, at a reduced salary, until the next bar exam rolled around.
"The rest had to leave the office or were fired," former D.A. Lynne Abraham wrote in an email. "They all left and I didn't have to fire anybody."
Jane Roh, Krasner's press spokesperson, did not respond over two days to a request for comment. She also did not respond to a report that Krasner intends to keep all 18 ADAs who failed the bar exam until they get another chance to pass the test.
Krasner, apparently, is a big believer in second chances. For criminals, and also for young law students who fail the bar exam the first time. But that's going to take a while.
Since the next bar exam is scheduled for February, and the results won't be known until June, it remains a mystery what Krasner plans to do with the 18 new ADAs who don't have a law license.
"It's important to know that the rules for the graduates is that they can go into court as a certified law student while awaiting the results of the bar exam, but once they failed they are no longer able to go to court," Abraham wrote. "Wonder what Larry is doing with all those who failed the bar and cannot go to court. Must be great having the luxury of having all those lawyers hanging around trying to figure out who they can let out of prison today."
Abraham said that she had never hired more than 20 new ADAs at a time. But when he took over as DA, Krasner's first action was to fire 31 veteran prosecutors, which opened up a few jobs.
Abraham had a few more things to get off her chest. She said that unlike Krasner, she didn't hire ADAs "who were most likely to abolish jail for criminals, or wanted to let everyone out of jail, or who routinely downgraded the seriousness of a case just to get a plea to a nonexistent crime and not what they were really arrested for."While Krasner's spokesperson was apparently hiding under her desk, Abraham continued her blistering condemnation of Krasner.
"Nor did we want people who disregarded or denigrated the PAIN OF OUR VICTIMS, OR WANTED TO ABOLISH ALL THE PREVENTATIVE PROGRAMS WE STARTED," Abraham wrote.
One of the programs Abraham was referring to was designed to get prostitutes off the street. And it was successful until Krasner came along and basically legalized prostitution.
"We wanted prosecutors," she said. "All others could apply to the Public Defender's Office."