Earlier today, it was announced by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner – one of the most dangerous and progressive DAs in our country – will not seek capital punishment in the case against Miles Pfeffer – the man accused of murdering Temple University Police Sergeant Christopher Fitzgerald.
This hit close to home as Sergeant Fitzgerald is the son of one of our advisory board members, Dr. Joel Fitzgerald Sr, a current police chief.
Christopher Fitzgerald was just thirty-one and a father of five when he was murdered on February 18, 2023. At the time, Christopher was in full uniform while trying to apprehend the suspect who had a firearm in his possession. Already shot and incapacitated, Christopher was shot again five additional times in the face at close range. According to police, the accused, Miles Pfeffer, then took the time to search through Christopher’s pockets looking for valuables and attempted to steal his gun.
Christopher’s family calls on Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry to empower newly appointed Special Prosecutor Michael Untermeyer to adopt the case.
Police unions, including the Philadelphia FOP Lodge 5, Temple University Police Association, and the PA State FOP, have also joined in condemning the fact that Krasner will not seek the death penalty in this case; to not give judge or jury even the option for considering death in this heinous crime is asinine.
The Caldwell Institute for Public Safety fully joins this same call for justice.
“Christopher’s is the first case of a police officer being killed that [Krasner’s] office will prosecute, and instead of rewriting an already flawed script on crime and punishment, he has allowed hubris and an intense disdain for law enforcement officers to cloud his judgment,” Dr. Joel Fitzgerald Sr. declared in a family statement. “Krasner is unable to divorce himself from years as a defense attorney and has tipped the scales of justice one-way. The mayor will not say it, but he is an anchor to the city that he adopted.”
Krasner’s soft-on-crime agenda has been destroying Philadelphia now for years.
Murders have increased every year Krasner has been in office. (A staggering 57% increase in murders compared to pre-pandemic numbers.) Other offenses — from shootings to carjackings — have also reached astonishing and frightful highs. 2022 saw gunpoint robberies up almost 21% over 2020, with burglaries up more than 40%. Two-thirds of all felony cases have been dropped or lost by his office. More than 60% of shooting cases have resulted in a dismissal, 37% of illegal firearms cases.
Krasner even established a special unit tasked with helping to make sure 18- to 25-year-old offenders get more lenient treatment – the treatment now being given to Sergeant Fitzgerald’s alleged killer. Krasner already spared two earlier cop-killers (coincidentally represented by campaign donors) from the death penalty.
In late 2022, The Pennsylvania House of Representatives impeached Krasner for the “catastrophic consequences” of his “progressive philosophies” and “misbehavior in office,” even including obstructing the House’s investigation of his office. (The Democrat-held Senate, naturally, voted against his removal.)
Krasner has called law-and-order prosecutors “war criminals” and has sued the Philadelphia Police Department over 75 times. The radical chant of “F–k the police” was shouted loud and clear at his election-night victory rally.
Is it any wonder then that Krasner will not support all options of justice for Police Sergeant Christopher Fitzgerald?
Attorney General Michelle Henry must empower Special Prosecutor Michael Untermeyer today to adopt this case and restore all possible punishment options to our justice system. Trusting Larry Krasner to get the job done only invites more injustice and more murder in the former “City of Brotherly Love.”
Gianno Caldwell
Founder,
Caldwell Institute For Public Safety
