Philadelphia D.A. Larry Krasner on Drugs & Criminal Justice Reform

I first crossed paths with Larry Krasner almost thirty years ago, when he was a young activist attorney representing a needle exchange program in Philadelphia. Today he is district attorney of Philadelphia and one of the highest-profile progressive prosecutors in the United States.

We talked about what it’s like to switch sides after decades of criminal defense and to occupy the single most powerful law enforcement position in city government. I asked about his support for local harm reduction policies, as well as his efforts to take on the “evil twin” of mass incarceration: mass supervision. And I pressed Larry on a few questions he was more reluctant to answer, like the influence of his upbringing on who he is now, and whether he might best accomplish his reformist objectives by running for mayor of Philadelphia.

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