Longtime Philadelphia Municipal Court Judge Patrick F. Dugan, who led the city’s lower courts through the chaos of the pandemic shutdown, has resigned from the bench, and sources close to him say he plans to launch a campaign for district attorney.
Dugan, 64, sent a letter to Gov. Josh Shapiro on Thursday saying his last day on the job would be Dec. 11, according to a copy obtained by The Inquirer. The letter did not say why he was resigning, but sources close to Dugan say he intends to challenge U.S. Attorney Larry Krasner in the upcoming Democratic primary.
Rumors about his interest in the race had been circulating for months. Sitting justices are prohibited from publicly engaging in politics, so Dugan had to step down before formally launching his campaign. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday.
Sources say Dugan is expected to announce his candidacy within a few weeks. Krasner is said to be planning to run again, but has not announced it publicly.
Others who have expressed interest in joining the May 20 primary election — which, in Philadelphia’s deep blue color typically indicates who will win in November — include defenseman Charles Gibbs and Kendra McCrae-Kanecriminal defense attorney who made unsuccessful candidacy for judge in 2019. McCrae-Kane confirmed she is seriously considering running for district attorney, but could not be reached for additional comment Friday.
Dugan, a Philadelphia native, was appointed to the Municipal Court in 2007 by then-Gov. Ed Rendell and was re-elected to a full term two years later. Last year, he unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the Supreme Court.
In 2019, he was elected by his colleagues to the position of judge president of the City Court for five years. This position oversaw the administrative functions of the lower court in Philadelphia’s two-tier criminal and civil court system, managing the scheduling of tens of thousands of cases annually involving crimes, evictions, and civil trials. He took the helm during the coronavirus shutdown, enduring some of the most challenging years the courts and prison systems have ever seen, with cases severely delayed, backlogged and moved to remote hearings.
“For the past 17 years, I have had the privilege of being in the courtroom and hearing cases that directly impact the lives of Philadelphians,” Dugan wrote in his letter to Shapiro. “I have always focused on balancing the interests of victims and defendants to ensure justice for all.”
Dugan spent 23 years serving in the U.S. Army and Reserves, including: during missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to his biography. That experience inspired him to launch the Philadelphia Veterans Court in 2010 as a place where veterans arrested for certain lower-level crimes can receive care and treatment and, if they meet the requirements, have their charges reduced or dropped.
Dugan, the grandson of a Philadelphia firefighter who was killed in the line of duty, grew up in Frankford and attended St. Joachim Grammar School and then St. Joseph’s Prep, – reports the Northeast Times.. He attended Rutgers Camden Law School and is married to retired Philadelphia Police Officer Nancy Dugan. Their blended family includes six children and 12 grandchildren.
