| Post: | District Attorney |
| Body: | Philadelphia |
| Incumbent: | Larry Krasner |
| Incumbentsince: | January 1, 2018 |
| Termlength: | 4 years |
| Formation: | 1850 |
| First: | Horn R. Kneass |
| Salary: | $ 175,576 (2017) |
The office of the District Attorney of Philadelphia is the largest prosecutor's office in the state of Pennsylvania and oversees a jurisdiction that includes more than 1.5 million citizens of both the city and county of Philadelphia.[1] The current District Attorney of Philadelphia is Larry Krasner. The district attorney represents the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the City & County of Philadelphia in all criminal and other prosecutions.
The district attorney is an elected office, and terms begin on the first Monday in January following the election.[2] Prior to 1850, the functions of this office were performed by a deputy state attorney-general. An Act of 3 May 1850 P.L. 654 authorized the voters of each of Pennsylvania's counties to elect one person, of requisite legal background to serve as district attorney for a term of three years.[2] The term was extended to four years under the State Constitution of 1874, Article 14.[2] [3]
| District Attorney | Term | Political party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horn R. Kneass | 1850–1851 | Republican | |
| William B. Reed | 1851–1856 | Republican | |
| William B. Mann | 1856–1868 | Republican (On November 3, 1856, Lewis C. Cassidy had been elected district attorney but his election was successfully contested by William B. Mann.) | |
| Furman Sheppard | 1868–1869 | Republican | |
| Charles Gibbons | 1869–1870 | Republican (On November 2, 1868, Furman Shepard was duly elected and sworn-in as District Attorney, however, Mr. Gibbons contested the election and the court declared him the victor, in 1870 the court realized a tabulation error and reappointed Furmand. | |
| Furman Sheppard | 1870–1871 | Republican | |
| William B. Mann | 1871–1875 | Republican | |
| Furman Sheppard | 1875–1878 | Republican | |
| Henry S. Hagert | 1878–1881 | Republican | |
| George S. Graham | 1880–1899 | Republican (Elected Nov. 2, 1880, declined to be a candidate in 1899, later elected to the US House of Representatives in 1912)[4] | |
| P. Frederick Rothermel | 1899–1902 | Republican | |
| John Weaver | 1902–1903 | Republican (Elected in 1901 and left office after being elected Mayor of Philadelphia in 1903.)[5] [6] | |
| John C. Bell | 1903–1907 | Republican (Appointed in 1903 to fill term of John Weaver, reelected 1904, declined renomination) | |
| Samuel P. Rotan | 1906–1926 | Republican (First elected in 1906) | |
| Charles Edwin Fox | 1926–1928 | Republican (First Jewish DA in Philadelphia)[7] [8] | |
| John Monaghan | 1928–1931 | Republican[9] [10] | |
| Charles F. Kelley | 1931–1941 | Republican (died in office)[11] [12] | |
| John H. Maurer | 1941–1952 | Republican | |
| Richardson Dilworth | January 7, 1952 – January 2, 1956 | Democratic (elected Mayor of Philadelphia in 1955)[13] | |
| Victor H. Blanc | January 2, 1956 – January 8, 1962 | Democratic[14] [15] [16] | |
| James C. Crumlish, Jr. | January 8, 1962 – January 3, 1966 | Democratic (Appointed district attorney to finish out the four-year term of Victor Blanc, who had been named a judge, later a longtime Commonwealth Court Judge, himself.) [17] [18] | |
| Arlen Specter | January 3, 1966 – January 7, 1974 | Republican (two four-year terms, lost his pursuit to a third term in 1973 general election.)[19] | |
| F. Emmett Fitzpatrick | January 7, 1974 – January 2, 1978 | Democratic (lost 1977 primary election to Ed Rendell) | |
| Edward G. Rendell | January 2, 1978 – January 6, 1986 | Democratic (elected to two four-year terms) | |
| Ronald D. Castille | January 6, 1986 – March 12, 1991 | Republican (elected two four-year terms, resigned his office for an unsuccessful campaign for Mayor of Philadelphia) | |
| Lynne Abraham | May 15, 1991 – January 4, 2010 | Democratic (succeeded Ron Castille; elected to four four-year terms) | |
| Seth Williams | January 4, 2010 – June 29, 2017 | Democratic | |
| Kelley B. Hodge | July 24, 2017 – December 31, 2017 | Democratic (interim) | |
| Larry Krasner | January 1, 2018 – present | Democratic (incumbent)[20] |