Fran Chardo for Dauphin County District Attorney

My name is Fran Chardo and I have the great privilege of serving as the Dauphin County District Attorney.  I have served as District Attorney since the Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas appointed me on January 2, 2018.  In 2019 and 2023, the voters of Dauphin County elected me to four year terms.

For 30 years, I have served as a full-time prosecutor in the Dauphin County District Attorney’s Office.  

I am one of only 11 board certified criminal trial advocates in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  I have prosecuted thousands of cases and personally tried over 135 jury trials.  This has included some of the most dangerous offenders to strike in Dauphin County during the last quarter century.

When warranted, I have sought and obtained long penitentiary sentences for violent felons.

When appropriate, I have given second chances to non-violent offenders. 

In my 30 years of practice, I have always sought to do justice and to protect my community. 

-Fran Chardo

I live in Lower Paxton Township with my wife, Christine, and our daughters, Catie and Sophie.

We are parishioners at St. Joan of Arc in Hershey, where Catie and Sophie attended school.

I have done my best to serve the community in which I live.  I currently serve on the Board of Trustees of the Dauphin County Library System.  I previously served as board president of both the Boys and Girls Club of Harrisburg and the Capital Area Unit of the American Cancer Society.  I also served as a member of the Pennsylvania Joint State Government Commission Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking.

I have taught the law both at the Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University and at Widener University Commonwealth School of Law.  I have taught prosecutors from all over the country as a faculty member of the National Advocacy Center at the University of South Carolina. Here in Pennsylvania, I taught at the police academy for many years and I continue to teach and create courses for the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Institute.

These teaching duties have helped to advance my knowledge and skills. They have made me a better lawyer.  They have also made me a better leader and resource for the 30 other prosecutors in our office.

I am very proud of what I have accomplished as a prosecutor over the years.  Whether prosecuting notorious murderers or public officials who have abused their authority, I have sought to make Dauphin County a better and safer place.  I would appreciate your help in my effort to continue this work as I seek another term as your District Attorney.

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