As Democrats turn to celebrities, Republicans turn to causes célèbres. Mark McCloskey and Patricia McCloskey, the St. Louis attorneys who went viral for pointing guns at Black Lives Matter protesters in their neighborhood, will make a virtual appearance during the 2020 Republican National Convention.
The McCloskeys, each accused of committing a felony, have received widespread support from Republican elected officials and Second Amendment advocates for their actions on June 28. The case against them was brought by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner (D). Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt (R) has promised to fight the “political prosecution” on behalf of the McCloskeys. Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley (R) has also asked the Department of Justice to look into whether Gardner violated the McCloskeys’ civil rights by initiating a prosecution. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) said he would “without a doubt” pardon the McCloskeys.
Mark McCloskey made a number of media appearances, including on Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s show, and spoke about the incident. McCloskey said that he and his wife were “literally afraid that within seconds they would surmount the wall and come into the house, kill us, burn the house down and everything that I had worked for and struggled for for the last 32 years.”
During a CNN interview, McCloskey said he was a person who was scared for his life and the “victim of a mob that came through the gate.”
He said he was in “imminent fear” that he and his wife would be run over and killed. McCloskey said that the important context to understand this fear was that, as recently as June 2, he saw St. Louis burning. McCloskey cited the murder of 77-year-old retired police captain David Dorn.
McCloskey said the “mob” was threatening and committing acts of “terrorism” and “social intimidation.” He said they smashed down the gate to the private gated community and were trespassing.
The attorney has also said that he got death threats that night.
“One fellow standing right in front of me pulled out two pistol magazines, clicked them together and said you’re next. That was the first death threat we got that night,” McCloskey said. McCloskey further said that the protesters were not walking the correct way to St. Louis mayor Lyda Krewson’s home, where they were believed to be heading. The mayor faced calls for her resignation over the weekend after she doxxed Black Lives Matter protesters on Facebook Live. Krewson later apologized.
While the McCloskeys maintained they were lawfully defending themselves and their home against angry trespassers, Kim Gardner charged the married couple for unlawful use of a weapon.
“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,” Gardner wrote in a statement posted on Twitter. She described the protesters as “peaceful” and “unarmed.” Authorities seized the rifle and pistol pictured above.
The highly-politicized incident will not go unmentioned at the Republican National Convention, where President Donald Trump’s campaign will undoubtedly make “law and order” a predominant theme.
Covington Catholic graduate Nick Sandmann will also make an appearance. Sandmann’s 2019 March for Life encounter with Native American activist Nathan Phillips led to numerous defamation lawsuits against the media and public figures. The general complaint was the mainstream media and various liberal elites had taken a contextless video and baselessly painted a group of white, pro-life Catholic high school students as racists. CNN and Washington Post settlements ensued.
“I can’t tell you all enough about how excited I am to be apart of this years RNC!” Sandmann tweeted on Tuesday.
[Image via KMOV screengrab]
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