DA Promises: We’ll Find ICE Agents
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner spoke at a City Hall rally and made a loud promise. He said state prosecutors will pursue ICE agents they believe committed crimes. He even invoked the post-World War II hunt for Nazis as a comparison.
His comments came as city lawmakers introduced bills to sharply limit how ICE can operate inside Philadelphia. The proposed rules would bar ICE from using city property, curb cooperation between city agencies and federal immigration authorities, stop some data sharing, and require warrants for access to public facilities such as libraries, shelters, and health centers.
At the rally Krasner said this:
“This is a small bunch of wannabe Nazis–that’s what they are. In a country of three hundred and fifty million, we outnumber them. And as long as we stick to our values, protect our rights, make it very clear that homicide is not okay just because you are a federal officer. If we do that, this will end differently. I have one final promise to you and that is that I along with a bunch of other state prosecutors– keep your eye on this, you’ll be hearing more about it tomorrow, but I along with a bunch of other state prosecutors are rallying around Mary Moriarty, who is the prosecutor in Minneapolis. I know for a fact she is working twenty-four/seven to make sure that there is justice coming out of two, what appear to be by all indications criminal homicides and what appears to be by all indications a criminal shooting of someone in the leg. I want, I want you to understand that just as you have come together there are state prosecutors coming together right now to make sure that people understand there will be accountability. There will be accountability now. There will be accountability in the future. There will be accountability after Trump is out of office. If we have to hunt you down the way they hunted down Nazis for decades, we will find your identities. We will find you. We will achieve justice and we will do so under the Constitution and the laws of the United States”
Krasner later posted a statement on Instagram explaining his view on state authority. He wrote: “State prosecutors absolutely can and absolutely should bring charges against federal officers who commit crimes within their jurisdiction.” That sentence has become a key line in the debate over whether local prosecutors can or should pursue federal agents.
Supporters of Krasner’s stance say local officials must protect city residents and enforce state laws when federal actors step over legal lines. Opponents warn this could set up clashes between local and federal authorities and could chill immigration enforcement.
The political stakes are high. This isn’t just about policing in one city. It feeds into a national fight over immigration policy, federal power, and how—and who—gets to enforce the law on American streets.
Watch the reporter video of Krasner’s remarks here:
Expect this story to keep growing. City bills move through council. State prosecutors signal they’ll act. Federal authorities could respond. The tension between local leaders and federal agencies is real, and it’s only getting louder.