St. Louis’ top prosecutor on Monday charged Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the St. Louis couple that aimed their guns at Black Lives Matter protesters in their neighborhood last month, with felony unlawful use of a weapon.
According to the Associated Press, St. Louis circuit attorney Kim Gardner’s announcement of the charges against the St. Louis couple, who are both personal injury attorneys, included a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree assault.
Gardner told the AP before her official announcement of the charges against the St. Louis couple that their actions during the peaceful protest that occurred outside their home risked creating a violent situation.
“It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening manner — that is unlawful in the city of St. Louis,” Gardner told the AP.
Gardner is recommending a diversion program instead of jail time for the St. Louis couple if convicted, according to the AP.
The attorney for the McCloskeys, Joel Schwartz, told the AP in a statement that he finds the charges “disheartening as I unequivocally believe no crime was committed.”
The filing of charges against the St. Louis couple comes a few days after Missouri Gov. Mike Parson suggested that he would pardon them if convicted during an interview with local radio host Marc Cox.
President Trump previously attacked Gardner’s probe of the St. Louis couple, which he characterized as a “disgrace.” After Parson claimed that Trump would be getting involved in the case, Al Watkins, one of the McCloskey’s lawyers, told TPM last week that he has been in talks with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.
