{"id":131676,"date":"2020-07-16T02:16:00","date_gmt":"2020-07-16T06:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/?p=131676"},"modified":"2023-11-21T11:02:12","modified_gmt":"2023-11-21T17:02:12","slug":"st-louis-couple-who-had-firearms-seized-by-police-offered-50-free-ar-15s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/st-louis-couple-who-had-firearms-seized-by-police-offered-50-free-ar-15s\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Louis Couple Who Had Firearms Seized by Police Offered 50 Free AR-15s"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The couple is under investigation by the St. Louis Circuit Attorney. (Photo: Screenshot\/Youtube)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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A couple in St. Louis who had their firearms confiscated after brandishing an AR-15 and a handgun at Black Lives Matter protesters have been sent 50 offers of free AR-15s. President Trump has also voiced his support for the couple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mark and Patricia McCloskey became an internet sensation last month after a video went viral of the couple holding their firearms outside their St. Louis home while a group of protesters passed by on their way through a private neighborhood. The couple has been under investigation by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, and police seized their firearms as part of that investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SEE ALSO:<\/strong> Nevada Judge Allows Suit Alleging AR-15s Should be Considered Machine Guns<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joel Schwartz, the McCloskeys\u2019 criminal defense lawyer, told Forbes <\/a><\/em>that a Missouri gun store\u2014Alien Armory Tactical\u2014\u201calong with 50 people\u201d have contacted the pair and offered to replace the AR-15. Schwartz says his clients are \u201ckindly refusing\u201d the gesture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a Facebook post, Alien Armory Tactical also offered free firearms training.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

SEE ALSO: Armed Homeowners Brandish Firearms as BLM Protesters Break into Gated Neighborhood<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even though the BLM protesters had trespassed on private property, and the McCloskeys claim some of them threatened the couple with violence, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner has vowed to prosecute the pair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardner has faced criticism for being weak on crime<\/a> in the infamously violent city, but she\u2019s not holding back in her pursuit of the McCloskeys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She has yet to file charges, but she issued a statement on Twitter voicing her \u201calarm\u201d at reports stating that \u201cpeaceful protesters\u201d were met by \u201cguns and violent assault.\u201d She vowed to \u201cuse the full power of Missouri law\u201d to hold those accountable who threatened the protesters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Trump, Missouri Governor Mike Parson, and Missouri Senator Josh Hawley have criticized Gardner and voiced support for the McCloskeys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President retweeted a video on June 29 of the couple defending their home, and he defended the couple during an interview with Townhall<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey were going to be beat up badly, and the house was going to be totally ransacked and probably burned down like they tried to burn down churches,\u201d the president said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gov. Parson pointed to Missouri\u2019s comprehensive castle doctrine law to defend the pair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat couple had every right to protect their property. They had the ability to do that as private citizens, like everyone else. What they should not go through is a prosecutor attempting to take their constitutional rights away by filing charges against them for protecting their property,\u201d Gov. Parson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

SEE ALSO: SAF Defeats St. Louis Public Housing Gun Ban to Protect Rape Victim\u2019s 2A Rights<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Hawley issued a letter to U.S. Attorney General William Barr urging him to investigate Gardner for a possible infringement on the McCloskey\u2019s civil liberties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is an unacceptable abuse of power and threat to the Second Amendment, and I urge you to consider a federal civil rights investigation into the St. Louis Circuit Attorney\u2019s Office to determine whether this investigation and impeding prosecution violates this family\u2019s constitutional rights,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardner responded<\/a> in an interview with the Washington Post by claiming that the attacks by Trump, Parson, and Hawley are racially motivated. Gardner was the first African American to head the St. Louis Circuit Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a modern-day night ride, and everybody knows it,\u201d she told the Post, referring to attacks on African American neighborhoods perpetrated by the Ku Klux Klan. \u201cAnd for a president to participate in it, in the larger context of racism and cronyism, is scary.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n