From Daily Mail: The St. Louis couple who drew national attention in 2020 for pointing firearms at Black Lives Matter protesters outside their home has finally regained possession of one of those weapons after a years-long legal dispute.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey, both attorneys, went viral during the summer of 2020 when they were seen armed on their front lawn as demonstrators passed through their private neighborhood.
The couple said they felt threatened after protesters broke through a gate and ignored ‘No Trespassing’ signs displayed on their private street – no one was hurt in the instance.
Now, five years after the viral spectacle, Mark posted a video to X showing himself collecting the AR-15 rifle from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department as he was finally rewarded with the return of the firearm after the lengthy fight.
“It only took 3 lawsuits, 2 trips to the Court of Appeals and 1,847 days, but I got my AR15 back!” Mr. McCloskey wrote in an X post. “We defended our home, were persecuted by the left, smeared by the press, and threatened with death, but we never backed down.”
The McCloskeys were charged with unlawful use of a weapon, but they eventually pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges – fourth-degree assault (Mark) and second-degree harassment (Patricia). They also agreed to forfeit the weapons.
They were later pardoned by Missouri Governor Mike Parson, erasing the offenses from the couple’s records and allowing them to reclaim their confiscated firearms.
“That gun may have only been worth $1,500 or something, and it cost me a lot of time and a lot of effort to get it back, but you have to do that,” Mark told Fox News Digital. “You have to let them know that you will never back down.”
Patricia’s Bryco .380-caliber pistol is still being held by the St. Louis Sheriff’s Department, but Mr. McCloskey said the pistol should be returned sometime next week.
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