FILE – In this June 28, 2020, file photo, armed homeowners Mark and Patricia McCloskey, stand in front their house along Portland Place confront protesters marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s house in the Central West End of St. Louis. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP, File)
ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis officials will not prosecute nine people who were charged with trespassing after a confrontation with a gun-wielding couple during a demonstration.
The nine people were part of a group that entered a private and gated St. Louis neighborhood during a racial injustice protest in June. Mark and Patricia McCloskey confronted the protesters with guns and have been charged with unlawful use of a weapon, a felony.
Deputy City Counselor Michael Garvin said Tuesday prosecution of the nine protesters on the misdemeanor charges is not warranted. He also said residents who are trustees of the private neighborhood said they didn’t want to pursue trespassing charges.
