Photo: Armed homeowners standing in front their house along Portland Place confront protesters marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s house earlier this month in the Central West End of St. Louis. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)
ST. LOUIS (AP) – A St. Louis couple celebrated in some circles and vilified in others for waving guns at protesters marching on their private street pleaded not guilty to two felony charges at a brief hearing Wednesday.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who are both attorneys in their early 60s, were indicted by a St. Louis grand jury last week on charges of unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with evidence. They will appear in court again Oct. 28.
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner originally filed the weapons charge in July. The grand jury added the evidence tampering charge. The indictment states that a semiautomatic pistol was altered in a way that “obstructed the prosecution of Patricia McCloskey” on the weapons charge.
The McCloskeys have blamed the “leftist” Democrats in St. Louis for their plight and have become folk heroes among some conservatives. They have received support from President Donald Trump and they spoke on video during the opening night of the Republican National Convention.
In fact, the McCloskeys’ attorney, Joel Schwartz, indicated that Trump remains interested in the case.
“They have spoken with the president,” Schwartz said after the hearing. “The president contacts them semi-frequently.” He declined to elaborate and the McCloskeys declined to be interviewed.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has defended the couple’s right to protect their home and said he will pardon them if they are convicted.
The protest on June 28 came in the midst of national racial injustice demonstrations that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. A few hundred marchers were on their way to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s home when they veered onto a private street made up of million-dollar homes in St. Louis’ posh Central West End.
The McCloskeys claimed the protesters not only ignored a “No Trespassing” sign but also broke down an iron gate. Protest leaders said they did not damage the gate.
Mark McCloskey emerged from his home armed with an AR-15 rifle and Patricia McCloskey came out with a semiautomatic handgun. It wasn’t immediately clear if that gun was the same one that was the subject of the evidence tampering charge.
Cellphone video captured the tense confrontation between the McCloskeys and the protesters. The couple said they felt threatened but protest leaders said the demonstration was peaceful on their end. No shots were fired and no one was hurt.
Gardner, a Democrat, said the display of guns risked bloodshed. A police probable cause statement said protesters feared “being injured due to Patricia McCloskey’s finger being on the trigger, coupled with her excited demeanor.”
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