St. Louis couple Mark and Patricia McCloskey who pointed guns at BLM rally anxious to prove innocence: Lawyer
ST LOUIS, MISSOURI: A St Louis couple who had hit national headlines after they were filmed pointing their guns at Black Lives Matter protesters who were marching past their mansion has made their first appearance in court.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey had gone viral on social media after they were seen threatening protesters outside their five-floor palatial home in the city's luxurious Forest Park area on the evening of June 28. At one point, Mark, who was carrying an AR-15, and Patricia, who was carrying a handgun, unknowingly point their weapon at each other as well.
The couple, who are both personal injury lawyers who run the McCloskey Law Center from inside their home, was charged with felony unlawful use of a weapon in connection to the incident, with St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner stating that their actions created the risk of bloodshed during what was an otherwise peaceful protest.
Those charges are now being contested in court, with Joe Schwartz, an attorney for the pair, telling reporters that they were anxious to prove "with absolute certainty" that they did not commit any crime. "We are simply anxious to remove all the noise from this case, move the case forward, and have the facts heard by a jury and let the jury decide whether or not the McCloskeys committed any felony offenses because we are convinced with absolute certainty that there was no felony committed here," Schwartz told Fox News.
Mark had previously defended his and his wife's actions in an interview with KMOV4 and claimed they pulled out their guns because the protesters knocked down an iron gate and ignored a "No Trespassing" sign. He said they were "in fear for our lives" after receiving death threats. "It was like the storming of the Bastille, the gate came down and a large crowd of angry, aggressive people poured through," he had said. "I was terrified that we’d be murdered within seconds. Our house would be burned down, our pets would be killed. A mob of at least 100 smashed through the historic wrought iron gates of Portland Place, destroying them, rushed towards my home where my family was having dinner outside and put us in fear for our lives."
Albert Watkins, another lawyer for the couple, had insisted at the time that Mark and Patricia were both staunch supporters for the Black Lives Matter movement and that his clients "were not arming themselves against peaceful protesters, they were arming themselves about people with a really bad motive, a motive that runs afoul of the fundamental tenets of our country."
The couple went on to defend themselves in a speech during the opening night of the Republican National Convention last week and professed their support for President Donald Trump. "Whether it’s defunding the police, ending cash bail so criminals can be released back out on the streets the same day to riot again, or encouraging anarchy on our streets, it seems as if Democrats no longer view the government’s job as protecting honest citizens from criminals, but rather protecting criminals from honest citizens," Mark said.
"Not a single person in the out-of-control mob you saw at our house was charged with a crime. But you know who was? We were. They’ve actually charged us with a felony for daring to defend our home," he added. During their first court appearance this past week, neither Mark nor Patricia entered a plea, and a judge continued their case until October 6. Schwartz revealed they will likely have more updates on the case by Wednesday, September 2.