Missouri Governor Mike Parson issued a pardon for the McCloskeys, a St. Louis attorney couple who became infamous for being barefoot and armed outside of their home during a Black Lives Matter protest last year.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey were accused of waving their guns at protesters who had breached their property line and took out a fence on their way in.
The original felony charges against the couple were dropped down to misdemeanors. The couple pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charges this past June. Patricia pleaded guilty to misdemeanor harassment, and Mark pleaded guilty to misdemeanor fourth-degree assault. Patricia was fined $2,000 while Mark’s fine was only $750. As part of the deal, they relinquished the weapons they were carrying that day.
It was later confirmed that no protester that entered their property was carrying a weapon. Many of them claimed that they had no idea they were entering private property when they stepped onto the McCloskey yard.
Special investigator Richard Callahan said in a news release last year, “There was no evidence that any of them had a weapon and no one I interviewed realized they had ventured onto a private enclave.”
“It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening matter at those participating in nonviolent protest, and while we are fortunate this situation did not escalate into deadly force, this type of conduct is unacceptable in St. Louis,” said Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner when she announced the charges. “We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation will not be tolerated.”
2/ It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening manner at those participating in nonviolent protest, and while we are fortunate this situation did not escalate into deadly force, this type of conduct is unacceptable in St. Louis.
— Circuit Attorney (@stlcao) July 20, 2020
5/ We must protect the right to peacefully protest, & any attempt to chill it through intimidation will not be tolerated.
— Circuit Attorney (@stlcao) July 20, 2020
The McCloskeys were two of 12 pardons issued by Governor Parsons on Tuesday. Parsons also issued two commutations.
Neither McCloskey is remorseful, and instead, Mark made it very clear that he doesn’t regret any of his nor his wife’s actions that day.
In a statement from July 2020, Mark told KMOV, “It was like the storming of the Bastille, the gate came down, and a large crowd of angry, aggressive people poured through. I was terrified that we’d be murdered within seconds. Our house would be burned down, our pets would be killed.”
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