After making national headlines for pointing their guns at Black Lives Matter protesters
back on June 28, 2020, Mark and Patricia McCloskey have been indicted by a St. Louis
County grand jury. The indictment includes a felony gun charge and a new charge of
tampering with evidence.
The McCloskey's were charged back in July with pointing their weapons at protesters
outside of their Central West End neighborhood mansion. Mark McCloskey, 63, pointed an
AR-15 rifle and Patricia McCloskey, 61, wielded a semiautomatic handgun, placing protesters
in fear of injury.
St. Louis Circuit Clerk Thomas Kloeppinger said a judge had ordered that both indictments
be sealed for no unknown reason.
The grand jury added one count of evidence tampering after the Circuit Attorney’s Office
charged the McCloskey's each with one count of unlawful use of a weapon back in July.
The McCloskey's have hired St. Louis criminal defense attorney Joel J. Schwartz of
Rosenblum Schwartz & Fry to represent them.
During a interview, Schwartz stated that he wasn't surprised that the grand jury indicted
his clients. "I’ll certainly be interested in what was presented to the grand jury”.
Outside the Carnahan Courthouse on Tuesday, Mark McCloskey criticized the Circuit
Attorney’s Office for not prosecuting protesters for trespassing on their private
Portland Place street home. Nine protesters were initially served police summonses,
but City Counselor Michael Garvin said on Sept. 29 that trespassing charges would
not be pursued.
“The government chooses to persecute us for doing no more than exercising our right
to defend ourselves, our home, our property and our family and now we’re getting drug
here time after time after time and for what?” Mark McCloskey said. “We didn’t fire a
shot. People were violently protesting in front of our house and screaming death
threats and threats of rape and threats of arson. Nobody gets charged but we get charged.”
Mark McCloskey then went on to blame Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden for the
couple’s prosecution.
Mark McCloskey says he and his wife are being “persecuted” for being charged with felonies while #STL city counselors office opts not to prosecute trespassers outside their Portland Place mansion. pic.twitter.com/IYRDXPLYAz
Missouri Governor Mike Parson has said he’ll pardon the McCloskeys if they're convicted.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed an amicus brief asking for the charges to
be dismissed. An amicus brief is a document that is filed in a court by someone who is
not directly related to the case under consideration. Schmitt has no jurisdiction in
criminal cases and no motion to dismiss has been filed.
Their next scheduled hearing is on Wednesday, October 14, 2020 at 9:01 A.M. at Carnahan
Courthouse.
