Philadelphia’s progressive Democratic District Attorney Larry Krasner is looking into bringing state charges against the Pennsylvania January 6 defendants who were pardoned by President Donald Trump this week, CNN first reported.
Krasner is looking at the records of defendants who were charged with assaulting police during the riot at the U.S. Capitol, or conspired with groups like the Oath Keepers or the Proud Boys. He said there might be charges that were left out of the federal indictment that the state could bring.
“You can have a state prosecution for conduct that was not fully encompassed in the federal prosecution,” Krasner told CNN.
“Those who actually believe in the rule of law and actually believe in the law and actually believe in order, in other words, those of us who are not MAGA, intend to preserve the values, traditions, laws and Constitution of the United States,” Krasner said. “And that means accountability for the co-conspirators of the 24-time felon president.”
“We have no comment beyond what is already public,” Dustin Slaughter, a spokesman for Krasner, told DVJournal.
But several legal professional dismissed Krasner’s statement as a publicity stunt, noting there are very few crimes committed in Washington, D.C. that can be pursued by a city prosecutor in Philadelphia.
Bruce L. Castor Jr., a former Montgomery County District Attorney called Krasner’s foray into the January 6 arena “outrageous.”
“I’d be stunned if he actually tried,” said Castor. He told DVJournal that Krasner’s foray into the incident is “outrageous.”
“He’s probably seeking publicity for just thinking about it. Krasner is not just bad at his job, in my view. He’s dangerous to the public.”
Former U.S. Attorney William McSwain called it “just another example of Krasner’s specialty of politicizing law enforcement at the expense of public safety in our city. The citizens of Philadelphia are tired of this act and deserve better.”
Former Chester County District Attorney Thomas Hogan wasn’t as dismissive, however.
“Double jeopardy would not act as a bar because of the separate sovereigns doctrine. The federal government and the states are considered separate entities, and each can bring their own charges,” Hogan said.
However, “the Philadelphia D.A. would run into two hurdles. First, the statute of limitations has expired on many potential charges. Second, the Philadelphia DAO lacks jurisdiction over offenses in Washington, D.C. They would need to use something like a conspiracy or solicitation-type of inchoate crime and allege some acts took place in Philadelphia before going to Washington,” Hogan said.
Castor noted some of the same legal obstacles.
“People who were convicted will claim he is engaging in bad faith, implicating double jeopardy protections, for example. There will be statute of limitations problems, too, as most misdemeanors in Pennsylvania have a two-year statute, and the conduct was four years ago. I would say there is zero chance Pennsylvania’s appellate courts would ultimately allow such cases to proceed.”
Castor said that if Krasner were to pursue that approach with the January 6 convicts, he could face legal jeopardy himself.
“The bigger problem for Krasner, however, is that his immunity from civil suit is qualified immunity, unless he is acting in court as district attorney,” said Castor. “What he does outside of court must be not only in the course of doing his job but further done in good faith.
“I do not think playing to the hometown voters, knowing that the appellate courts will reverse his decision, is acting in good faith. That would expose him to civil liability and a civil suit.”
And Castor had a warning for the progressive Philly D.A.
“We defended a number of January 6 cases and would do so again if Krasner tried this, especially since, off the top of my head, we could sue him as well. He is such a disaster in that position, I would welcome the opportunity.”