For Mark and Patricia McCloskey, it’s been a wild year.
The couple became somewhat infamous after a video went viral last year of them defending their property from BLM protestors who tresspassed into their neighborhood and allegedly yelled threats at the couple.
Mark was seen holding an AR-15 in the video.
After initially pleading not guilty to all charges, the McCloskeys both agreed to guilty pleas of misdemeanors in order to move past the incident.
Part of the agreement was that their guns were confiscated and destroyed.
However, because they only pleaded guilty to misdemeanors, the McCloskeys were able to purchase new weapons, which Mark showed off on social media.
Mark shared the good news and a picture on Twitter:
“Checking out my new AR!”
The McCloskey’s continue to insist that they did nothing wrong in defending their home.
Mark did a recent interview with Newsmax, where he contended that he would do the same thing again if a similar situation arose.
The Washington Examiner has the scoop:
The St. Louis couple who brandished weapons while staring down Black Lives Matter demonstrators have gotten new weapons to replace their confiscated firearms.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who days ago pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges for aiming guns at protesters in June 2020 at the height of the protests after George Floyd's death, have gotten new AR-15-style guns to replace the firearms state authorities will destroy as part of their plea bargains.
"Checking out my new AR!" Mark McCloskey wrote in a tweet Saturday, along with the hashtags "#2A," in reference to the Second Amendment, and "#MOSen," acknowledging his Senate candidacy.
On Thursday, Mark McCloskey pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree misdemeanor of assault and was ordered to pay a $750 fine, while Patricia McCloskey pleaded guilty to a second-degree misdemeanor of harassment and was directed to pay $2,000. Neither will face jail time, though the couple's firearms will be destroyed by state authorities.
The McCloskeys attracted media attention when on June 29, 2020, they surveyed their lawns as protesters marched past, with Mark McCloskey wielding an AR-15 and Patricia McCloskey carrying a silver handgun. The McCloskeys said the protesters broke into their luxury St. Louis neighborhood and threatened their lives.
"[They said] that they were going to kill us," Patricia McCloskey said in July 2020. "They were going to come in there. They were going to burn down the house. They were going to be living in our house after I was dead, and they were pointing to different rooms and said, 'That's going to be my bedroom, and that's going to be the living room, and I'm going to be taking a shower in that room.'"
Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner charged them with unlawful use of a weapon and evidence tampering while law enforcement seized the guns used to ward off the crowd. The pair originally pleaded not guilty in October.
Mark McCloskey Made No Apologies in an Interview with Newsmax
Mark had the perfect response to the Lincoln Project, who appeared to be triggered by the news:
Mr. McCloskey posted the photographs on social media, after he and his wife pleaded guilty to misdemeaners, and willingly gave up the original AR he used to defend his home from BLM activists last year.
The photos send a strong message to those who have celebrated the McCloskeys' suffering over the last year.
Our friends at the Daily Wire have more on the misdemeanor charges:
Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the St. Louis, Missouri, couple that went viral after confronting Black Lives Matter protesters on their own front lawn, pleaded guilty to misdemeanors, Thursday, and agreed to turn over their personal weapons to St. Louis authorities.
Local news reports that the pair, who were originally charged with felonies, inked the plea deal with prosecutors earlier this month despite previously pleading not guilty. A judge approved the plea deal on Thursday.
“Mark McCloskey pleaded guilty to a count of fourth-degree assault, which was filed in court Thursday and is a Class C misdemeanor. He was originally charged with unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence — both felony charges,” a St. Louis NBC affiliate reported Thursday afternoon.
“Patricia McCloskey pleaded guilty to second-degree harassment, which is a Class A misdemeanor charge that was filed last month when a count of tampering with physical evidence was removed. She also was originally charged with unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence,” the outlet noted.
Mark McCloskey has been ordered to pay $750 in fines, and Patricia McCloskey has been ordered to pay $2,000 in fines and $10 to the St. Louis crime victims fund. The pair were also ordered to turn over the two weapons they were pictured holding in a confrontation that went viral last year. The couple’s lawyer asked that the guns either be destroyed or rendered ineffective and sold to a collector as a historical artifact.
The judge denied that request.
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