DA withdraws all charges against Family Court judge accused of attacking his wife and daughter
Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Fanning showed proof of "extensive mitigation" since his arrest in March, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors on Thursday withdrew all charges against a Philadelphia Family Court judge accused of assaulting his wife and daughter earlier this year, saying the victims didn’t wish to proceed with the case and that the judge had shown proof of “extensive mitigation” in the months since the incident.
Michael Fanning was charged with aggravated assault, strangulation, and related crimes in March after prosecutors said he repeatedly punched his wife in the face, choked her, and dragged his 30-year-old daughter to the ground by her hair, causing her to cut her face, during a fight at their East Torresdale home.
But Assistant District Attorney Brian Collins said Wednesday that the victims were evaluated by medics and did not suffer injuries. They did not want to move forward with prosecuting Fanning, he said.
That, combined with the “extensive mitigation” records Fanning provided to prosecutors and the court, led the district attorney’s office to withdraw the charges, he said.
Collins did not detail the forms of mitigation Fanning presented, and Berks County Common Pleas Court Judge Jeffrey Sprecher, who presided over the case to avoid any conflict of interest with Fanning’s peers, did not ask during the brief hearing.
But at a hearing in March, Fanning’s wife said he had voluntarily entered a 30-day inpatient recovery program to treat his alcoholism, an issue the family had worked to address in the past.
Fanning did not testify during Wednesday’s hearing. He thanked Sprecher for his time before leaving the courtroom.
He declined to comment through his attorney Fortunato Perri Jr.
Collins also declined to comment on the decision.
Fanning was appointed to the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas bench in 2014 by then-Gov. Tom Corbett. He won a 10-year term in the 2015 election, and was retained for another term in November. He has been serving as a Family Court judge throughout his tenure.
Within days of his arrest, the Pennsylvania Court of Judicial Discipline, which adjudicates complaints against judges, suspended him without pay.
It was not immediately clear Wednesday how that judicial discipline case would proceed after the outcome of the case, or whether Fanning would be allowed to return to the bench.
