The SEPTA special prosecutor hasn’t taken on a single case. Two Pa. Republicans want to create another one for crimes against first responders.

HARRISBURG — More than a year after Pennsylvania lawmakers passed a bill to assign a special prosecutor to investigate and prosecute crimes committed on SEPTA property in Philadelphia, stripping District Attorney Larry Krasner of some of his authority, the unit remains mired in a lawsuit and has yet to take on a single case.

And now, two Republicans in Harrisburg want to add a second special prosecutor to handle another subset of crimes: those committed against Philadelphia police, firefighters, and medics.

State Sens. Frank Farry (R., Bucks) and Joe Picozzi (R., Philadelphia) proposed the idea to their colleagues this week in hopes of introducing a bill in the coming weeks, restarting an effort Farry began last year. The senators said Krasner has failed to adequately prosecute crimes against first responders, and they want to “have confidence” that such cases are being handled properly by having the state attorney general oversee them.

It’s the latest attempt by Republican legislators to circumvent the authority of Philadelphia’s progressive Democratic prosecutor, who is running for a third term. And it comes amid budget negotiations with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, who has clashed with Krasner for years and signed the bill to create the SEPTA prosecutor role into law during budget negotiations in 2023.

Krasner quickly filed a lawsuit attempting to block the law, saying it was unconstitutional, but Commonwealth Court, in a 4-3 decision, ruled against him and said the work could move forward. Krasner has appealed that ruling to the state Supreme Court, and arguments in the case are set for May.

Then-acting Attorney General Michelle Henry named Michael Untermeyer to the role in June. Untermeyer, a Democrat, is a former city and state prosecutor who unsuccessfully ran against Krasner when the district attorney was first elected in 2017. He also ran for Philadelphia sheriff in 2023, but lost.

Since his appointment, Untermeyer has not taken on a single SEPTA case. In a brief interview this week, he said it has been challenging to hire a team of attorneys amid the transition from the administration of Henry to that of Republican Attorney General Dave Sunday, who started his term in January. Untermeyer said he recently hired his first staff attorney, who starts later this month.

“The work will be starting very soon,” he said.

He referred additional questions to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. A spokesperson for the office said that the unit is preparing amid the pending legal challenge and that in the meantime, Untermeyer “has been engaged with community partners, building relationships and an infrastructure for the office.”

Krasner declined to comment Wednesday on the SEPTA effort or the senators’ latest proposal.

Despite the slow start for the SEPTA unit, Farry said he sees the effort as a model.

He first pitched the idea to circumvent Krasner’s office on crimes committed against first responders last year, an effort that was reinforced after a Philadelphia fire medic was stabbed in the back of an ambulance in October 2024, he said. (The assailant in that case was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault, and related crimes, and is awaiting trial.)

He asked Picozzi, the lone Senate Republican representing parts of Philadelphia, to sign on this year, and Picozzi agreed, calling it a “no-brainer.”

“We want to ensure that those offenders are being prosecuted at the proper level and with the proper enthusiasm,” said Farry, a longtime fire chief in Bucks County.

Farry said he was not deterred by the lack of progress on the SEPTA prosecutor, which he said was due in part to delays associated with the legal challenges filed by Krasner.

The two lawmakers said they are still in the information-gathering stage and will talk to all stakeholders as they draft the bill.

The senators worked closely with the union that represents Philadelphia firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs.

Mike Bresnan, president of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 22, said that dozens of his members have been assaulted in the city in recent years and that many of those charged with crimes as a result had had their charges reduced or withdrawn. He said 28 of his members were assaulted last year, and in cases where charges were filed, they often did not hear back from prosecutors as the cases moved through the courts.

Bresnan endorsed Krasner’s opponent in his reelection campaign, former Judge Patrick F. Dugan, this week. At a news conference announcing his endorsement, Bresnan said his union is helping the GOP lawmakers draft the bill that would create a special prosecutor for crimes against first responders and modeling it on the job of the SEPTA special prosecutor.

Bresnan said the union analyzed data in 2021, when Krasner first ran for reelection, and saw “a pattern of Krasner’s office downgrading the charges.” He no longer had access to that data, he said, but “we’re assuming the same crap’s going on.”

Bresnan, who previously endorsed President Donald Trump — igniting a wave of conflict between members and even a lawsuit — said there is an ongoing issue of “lawlessness” in Philadelphia for which he blames Krasner.

“Our members need all the protections we can get,” he said.

Bresnan said there is an ongoing staffing shortage of medics, and sometimes they are responding to scenes where people are in distress without police backup.

As a result, he said, more than two dozen first responders were attacked last year. Some, records show, were punched in the face, bitten, and kicked. And one medic was critically wounded in a stabbing that punctured his lung, Bresnan said.

Leaders of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 were surprised by the plan, a union spokesperson said, and had not been briefed on the forthcoming bill.

Picozzi said that all first responders are at risk and that this effort shows “we have their backs.”