Here’s why pardoned Jan. 6 rioters almost certainly will avoid state prosecution

The ordeal may not be over for some of the more than 1,500 Jan. 6 criminal defendants granted clemency by President Donald Trump, as certain prosecutors are currently investigating whether some of the individuals — particularly those alleged to have committed violent crimes — could be charged at the state or local level.

That loophole was floated by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, who told CNN that his office was looking into the possibility of bringing state election- or conspiracy-related charges against some of the Pennsylvania residents who were pardoned or saw their prison sentences commuted during the first week of the Trump presidency.

Krasner’s office could theoretically take action against the more than 100 Pennsylvania residents who received full pardons or sentence commutations, including a Philadelphia-based Proud Boys leader who was sentenced to 15 years in prison on charges of seditious conspiracy and another Pittsburgh-area man sentenced to 14 years…