A federal judge has requested that federal prosecutors investigate Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, alleging that he may have obstructed justice and possibly committed other crimes in his handling of a post-conviction case. The request came from U.S. District Judge Paul S. Diamond Jr., who issued a memorandum as part of a legal case involving Dennis Johnson, a man seeking to overturn his second-degree murder conviction. Krasner’s office has supported Johnson’s effort to be exonerated. However, prosecutors working on the case said the handling of the case was poor and that Krasner ordered them to "protect the office" after the court began looking into their actions. In his memo, Judge Diamond ruled that Krasner and his deputy, Matthew Stiegler, could no longer be involved in the case. He cited evidence suggesting they may have tried to obstruct justice and had attempted to convince four prosecutors in their office to "urge the court to accept a false narrative," which he described as "criminal conspiracy." Diamond noted that he had reluctantly concluded that Krasner, as Philadelphia’s top law enforcement official, and Stiegler might have broken the law. He referred both to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for investigation and further action. Krasner strongly disagreed with the judge’s findings and said he would appeal the decision to a higher court as soon as allowed by law. He stated that the ongoing nature of the case limited his and his office’s ability to comment publicly at this time. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the matter. Krasner, a former civil rights attorney known for challenging police practices, took office in 2018 and has since faced increasing scrutiny over how his office handles post-conviction cases. Both the Pennsylvania attorney general and various state and federal judges have criticized Krasner’s office for seeking to overturn murder convictions without proper review. Earlier this year, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ordered the state attorney general to review all cases where Krasner’s office was attempting to overturn a conviction. Krasner has defended his office’s approach, maintaining that it is acting in the public interest.