PHILADELPHIA (AP) - The district attorney of Philadelphia is asking a judge to recuse himself from criminal cases, citing a discrimination complaint by his domestic partner, a former assistant district attorney.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that District Attorney Larry Krasner contends that “a reasonable person” would question Judge Scott DiClaudio’s impartiality in cases involving prosecutors.
Ex-assistant district attorney Catherine Smith was fired Feb. 8 and has filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission alleging that she was discriminated against because she is white.
DiClaudio, who canceled his entire 39-case docket Tuesday, said the motion would upend thousands of cases.
He said in court that such complaints are supposed to be private and suggested that making it public showed “vindictiveness.”
A prosecutor’s office official accused him of “expressing hostility toward the commonwealth.”
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Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, http://www.inquirer.com
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