Missouri couple who pointed guns at BLM protesters face law license suspension - The Washington Post
The gun-toting couple in St. Louis, Mo., who gained national notoriety after they stood on their lawn and pointed weapons at people protesting against racial injustice, may have their licenses to practice law revoked.
Missouri Chief Disciplinary Counsel Alan Pratzel, whose office is responsible for investigating ethical complaints against Missouri lawyers, this week asked the state Supreme Court to suspend their law licenses, according to a court filing first reported by Kansas City, Mo., radio station KCUR-FM.
Pratzel’s motion argued that the McCloskeys’ crimes had shown “indifference to public safety” and involved “moral turpitude” warranting discipline, as he recommended the state supreme court indefinitely suspend their licenses, according to the Associated Press. Pratzel also stated in the court filing that while a pardon erases a conviction, “the person’s guilt remains.”
Barefooted and brandishing rifles, images and videos of Mark McCloskey and his wife, Patricia, standing in front of their mansion on June 28, 2020 while protesters marched through their gated community went viral in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis — coming to symbolize a divided nation.
The protesters were heading to the home of Mayor Lyda Krewson (D) at the time, to call for her resignation amid nationwide Black Lives Matter protests. No shots were fired and no one was hurt.
The publicity seems to have done the couple little harm, instead transforming them into popular figures on the right. The pair, both in their 60s, appeared at the Republican National Convention last August and have received praise from several Republican leaders — including then-President Donald Trump — who spoke out in defense of their actions.
Mark McCloskey also announced in May that he would run for one of Missouri’s U.S. Senate seats, using the images from that tense faceoff with protesters in his campaign ads.
The couple did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the potential suspension of their law licenses. The Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel also did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Washington Post.
In June, Mark McCloskey pleaded guilty to misdemeanor fourth-degree assault and was fined $750 and Patricia McCloskey pleaded guilty to misdemeanor harassment and was fined $2,000. Both agreed to give up the guns they had wielded in the now-infamous incident.
However, as the charges were misdemeanors, the McCloskeys did not automatically lose their law licenses or their right to own firearms.
“I’d do it again,” he said from the courthouse steps in downtown St. Louis. “Anytime the mob approaches me, I’ll do what I can to put them in imminent threat of physical injury because that’s what kept them from destroying my house and my family.”
He had emerged with an AR-15-style rifle as Patricia waved a semiautomatic pistol, according to the indictment, with the couple stating that the protesters had broken through an iron gate onto their private street and were threatening. Protest organizers have said their march was peaceful.
After their pardon, the McCloskeys said in a statement to The Washington Post that they had “faced political prosecution for having the audacity to defend our lives and property from an angry mob.”
source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/09/21/missouri-couple-guns-blm-law-license-suspension/
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