Pennsylvania House Votes to Impeach Philadelphia’s Progressive D.A.

“For one individual to completely set aside entire categories of law, as has been done in Philadelphia, is the height of the arrogance of power, and a complete undermining of the rule of law,” said Representative Timothy R. Bonner, a Republican who supported impeachment.

More than 400 people have been killed in Philadelphia this year, and there have been more than 1,000 carjackings. Representative Martina White, a Republican who represents part of northeast Philadelphia, was the prime sponsor of the impeachment resolution, and last month accused Mr. Krasner of being “responsible for the rise in crime across our city.”

The prosecutor easily won re-election last year with significant support from Black voters in the northern and western parts of the city — neighborhoods that have been the most affected by gun violence. According to his office, homicides in Philadelphia have declined by 5 percent from a year ago today, and crime rates are lower than in the 1990s.

Democrats accused Republicans of abusing the impeachment process to damage Democrats running for office. “Impeachment now seems to be a measure that we’re using when we have a disagreement on public policy,” said Joanna E. McClinton, the House’s leading Democrat, whose district includes parts of Philadelphia, during the House session on Wednesday.

Though no Pennsylvania lawmaker has been impeached in recent years, Republican lawmakers raised the prospect of trying to remove Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and threatened to impeach Philadelphia election officials for their management of ballot counting during the 2020 presidential election.

In September, the House voted to hold Mr. Krasner in contempt for refusing to cooperate with a legislative committee investigating his possible impeachment. Mr. Krasner has accused the Republicans leading the committee of a lack of transparency, and of rushing the investigative process in an attempt to seek political points before the midterm elections.

A committee of state lawmakers controlled by Republicans issued a report last month charging that Mr. Krasner had “contributed to a catastrophic rise in violent crime” with his pursuit of progressive criminal justice policies, but stopped short of calling for Mr. Krasner’s impeachment.