Judge declines to return Mark McCloskey's guns, money despite pardon

Just the News ^ | Updated: December 30, 2022 - 4:44pm | Ben Whedon

[E. Pluribus Unum]

A Missouri judge on Wednesday declined to return Mark McCloskey's firearms and paid fines despite his receipt of a pardon from Republican Gov. Mike Parson.

The St. Louis lawyer and his wife, Patricia, came into the public spotlight in 2020 when the pair pointed firearms at demonstrators who had entered their neighborhood. There were no shots fired during the incident.

As part of a July 2021 plea deal, the couple surrendered their AR-15 and .380-caliber pistol, according to The Hill.

"While the governor’s pardon does clear plaintiff’s record of the conviction, his guilt remains and the terms of an agreement that predicated said guilt also remains," said Judge Joan Moriarty. The McCloskey's therefore are "required to follow through with their end of the bargain."

McCloskey intends to appeal the decision.

The couple surged to stardom within the conservative movement after footage of their standoff went viral and the pair spoke at the Republican National Convention in 2020.

[FlingWingFlyer]

Scumbag “Judge” Joanie thinks she’s God.

[sauropod]

Laws are good for some, not for others.

[SPDSHDW]

Cops already laundered the money, and took the guns home/sold them.

How can they be given back?

[Political Junkie Too]

"While the governor’s pardon does clear plaintiff’s record of the conviction, his guilt remains and the terms of an agreement that predicated said guilt also remains," said Judge Joan Moriarty.

I thought the purpose of pardons was to fix miscarriages of justice. That means that his finding of guilt is overturned.

Now, if this were just a commutation of sentence, that would be a different matter.

-PJ

[rellic]

Never ever, ever surrender, register, or tell the government anything about guns, Unless you are willing to go to war to get them back.

[vetvetdoug]

I have to stick with the judge on this one as the pardon doesn't reverse the findings, fines, and punishment which included the confiscation that happened before the pardon. Strict interpretation of the law is applicable in this case. Besides, the Bryco the woman held was a piece of crap but the AR Colt was worth a bright penny.

[\/\/ayne]

[Wally_Kalbacken]

I had a girlfriend in college who was from St. Louis. Shortly after graduation (early 1982) I went there to visit her and she gave me the nickel tour, including a drive through a gated subdivision full of run-down mansions. As we drove by some of the houses I got the narrative of my friend's experience visiting some of these places as a child. As we passed one house she mentioned that it had a ballroom on the third floor. That house left a very strong imprint in my memory and I recognized it as the McCloskey's home today. When I saw it 40 years ago it looked like the Addam's family home - it was in very rough shape and totally overgrown.

If you look you can find coverage from 5-6 years ago of their completion of the restoration of the house and some historical photos from the original owner's time there. The McCloskey's have searched the world to find and return some of the original artwork and furniture from images dating to the turn of the century.

If you have done any restoration work on a home you know how intensive it is - let alone on a property of that scale and historic significance.

If a mob of looters and perhaps arsonists came to a home you had invested that much time and $ into, what would you do? I might have fired some warning shots in the air. Given what they had seen in the preceding weeks - there is no way they could count on the police or the fire department to protect their property.

I often think that we are about to see the issue of equal justice under the law get to SCOTUS based on one of these rabidly Democratic jurisdictions (St. Louis, City of Atlanta, District of Columbia, NYC, etc.) going so far out of bounds (extremely biased harassment of Trump, refusal to defend property rights of folks like McCloskey) and it may result in mandatory randomization of case venues to avoid the manifest unfairness of having to defend yourself in front of a jury of people who are by no means your peers.

[abbastanza]

Except it was a political charge, not a legal one. Ask Hunter how that works for Democrats.

[Wally_Kalbacken]

The McCloskey House

[ealgeone]

Their "guilt" remains????

Lemsee if I have this right.

blm/antifa come to their house, trespass and threaten them....these folks rightly defend themselves....and they're the guilty ones??

We're in bazaro world.

[Navy Patriot]

That's what's Great about America, the "Double Standard Rule Of Law", and "Some Animals Are More Equal Protection Under Law".

It's what we fought the Revolution to establish.

[OHPatriot]

Need to go to war to prevent them from being “seized” in the first place.

Past time for Torch & Pitchfork parties.

[gloryblaze]

I see your link below regarding their home. I had no idea. We are fixing up and old house (in relative terms, about equal to their living room, ftr). I’d be sorely tempted to shoot anyone harming a shingle on it, for sure, after the blood, sweat and tears spent.

I can’t see any way to tier the justice system in a case like this relative to values, though. Too hot a potato.

Thanks for posting.

[kiryandil]

The “judge” is a Mel Carnahan stooge, and she came from the St. Louis prosecutor’s office in 1998.

[chopperk]

The Judge is a fool and breaking the law himself.