Steven Wildberger: Philadelphia prosecutors "are not your shields"
Steven WildbergerAssistant district attorney, Philadelphia District Attorney's Office (memo co-signed with Katherine Ernst)
In a memo to Krasner co-signed with Katherine Ernst, Wildberger said Krasner had called the prosecutors who work for him "human shields" and rejected that role.
Responding to
Krasner and Stiegler pressured Conviction Integrity Unit prosecutors to blame a departed colleague for errors and to present a false narrative to the court about the DAO's internal handling of Dennis Johnson's habeas petition -- conduct that "is tantamount to a prima facie showing" of false statements, false declarations under oath, perjury, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy.
“But the ADAs of the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office are not your shields; we are people”
Reporting
Other statements by Steven Wildberger in this case
Every statement by Steven Wildberger
Where this statement fits
Did Larry Krasner Pressure Staff to Mislead a Federal Judge About a Murder-Conviction Appeal?
A federal judge in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania found that Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner and Matthew Stiegler, chief of his office's Conviction Integrity Unit, may have pressured subordinate prosecutors to blame a departed colleague and present a false account to the court about an internal dispute over a 2022 concession in a habeas corpus case, and referred Krasner, Stiegler, and the District Attorney's Office to the U.S. Attorney's Office for investigation. Krasner disputes the judge's findings and says he will appeal.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Philadelphia Inquirer report on a five-page memo from Katherine Ernst and Steven Wildberger to Krasner, and on Krasner's emailed reply. The Inquirer obtained both documents; neither has been published in full. Krasner said he could not comment publicly; Ernst and Wildberger declined to comment.
Before the quotation
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the memo closes by accusing Krasner of calling his prosecutors "human shields" and of saying "judges can't get to you because you don't sign any filings."
After the quotation
The memo says that if Krasner did not correct the misrepresentations in his filings by Tuesday, "you will have constructively terminated us."
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The memo accuses Krasner of treating subordinate prosecutors as shields who sign filings so judges cannot reach him, which criticizes the pressure on staff that the case examines. The label is condemns.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Larry Krasner
More from this case
Read the full casePreib urges scrutiny of prosecutors in Philadelphia and Chicago
“While the Chicago media refuses to address the blatant parallels between top prosecutors in Philly and Chicago, federal investigators should not refuse to do so. Restoring the criminal justice system, in particular holding police killers accountable, is a central theme of the Trump administration. The feds must do their job not just in Philly, but Chicago as well.”Read statement
Krasner denies criminal and deliberate wrongdoing in WHYY interview
“Not only did we do nothing criminal, we did nothing that was deliberately wrong,”Read statement
Krasner tells the court he and his supervisors "acted with integrity"
“DA Krasner and his supervisory assistants acted with integrity in seeking to withdraw the erroneous brief, correct the errors, and change position to oppose a new trial”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Steven Wildberger: Philadelphia prosecutors "are not your shields"
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/4968-in-a-memo-to-krasner-co-signed-with
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Steven Wildberger: Philadelphia prosecutors "are not your shields"". First published: 2026-10-06. Last updated: 2026-10-06. https://disputeindex.com/events/4968-in-a-memo-to-krasner-co-signed-with