St. Louis couple seen pointing guns at protesters claim they were 'in fear of imminent harm'
06/29/2020 7:43 am PDT
By Becky Willeke, KTVI
ST. LOUIS (KTVI) -- Two St. Louis attorneys photographed pointing guns at protesters as the group marched toward Mayor Lyda Krewson's home issued a statement through their lawyer regarding Sunday's incident.
In the statement, attorney Al Watkins says Mark and Patricia McCloskey wanted to “set the record straight” about the protest and the actions of a few individuals who chose to exploit the otherwise peaceful protest to place the couple in fear of “imminent harm.”
“Their actions were borne solely of fear and apprehension, the genesis of which was not race-related. In fact, the agitators responsible for the trepidation were white,” said Watkins in the statement.
No charges were brought against the couple. St. Louis Metropolitan Police are investigating the incident as a trespassing and assault/intimidation case against the unknown people in the crowd.
Watkins states the couple acted lawfully on their property, which sits on a private gated lane in St. Louis City.
According to the Post-Dispatch, St. Louis police said the couple had called police for help once they saw the large crowd enter private Portland Place. The McCloskeys saw “a large group of subjects forcefully break an iron gate marked with 'No Trespassing' and 'Private Street' signs,” police said.
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