A Missouri couple who waved guns at Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020 have been placed on probation by the state Supreme Court.
The court on Tuesday suspended Mark and Patricia McCloskey’s law licenses but delayed their suspension by placing them on a year-long probation instead. The couple will be able to practice law during this time but the suspension will take effect if they violate their probation by breaking any more laws.
“Should probation be revoked and the suspension take effect, no petition for reinstatement shall be entertained for a period of six months from the date the suspension becomes effective,” chief justice Paul Wilson said, according to The Gazette.
The couple had said that they had taken out their guns because they felt threatened by protesters who were marching on their private street in St Louis during protests that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Mr McCloskey is alleged to have emerged from his home with an AR-15-style rifle, while his wife waved a semi-automatic pistol. The couple did not, however, fire any shots.
After the court ruling on Tuesday, Mr McCloskey, who is one of the several Republican candidates running for Senate, said that he will abide by the court’s ruling even though he thought it was a political decision.
“I think the reason why we were asked to be suspended had more to do with politics than anything else,” he said. “But we respect the supreme court’s opinion, although we disagree ... we will comply 100% with the orders.”
After the incident in June 2020, the couple grabbed national attention, including from former president Donald Trump and other Republicans.
Last year, Missouri governor Mike Parsons pardoned the couple.
Subsequently Missouri’s chief disciplinary counsel in September asked the court to suspend the couple’s law licenses. The counsel argued that their actions showed “indifference to public safety” and involved “moral turpitude”.
“I don’t think it’s a crime of moral turpitude because I don’t think it’s a crime to defend your home and your family,” Mr McCloskey told Newsweek on Tuesday.
Additional reporting by agencies
