The ACLU of Pennsylvania has filed an amicus brief on behalf of a number of criminal legal reform and voting rights advocacy organizations in a lawsuit brought by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner that challenges Act 40. Act 40 is a state law that allows the Pennsylvania Attorney General to appoint a special prosecutor for any crime that occurs on Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA).
If enforced, Act 40 would disenfranchise the Philadelphia voters who overwhelmingly elected and re-elected DA Krasner in landslide elections in 2017 and 2021. Act 40 would usurp the authority that those voters entrusted in DA Krasner.
The amicus brief alleges a violation of DA Krasner’s rights to equal protection under the Pennsylvania Constitution and a violation of the rights of Philadelphia voters who would effectively have their vote nullified by Act 40.
The amicus brief asks the court to declare Act 40 unconstitutional.
