Across much of the United States, it has become increasingly acceptable for Americans to walk the streets with firearms, either carried openly or legally concealed.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has made good on his promise to pardon a couple who gained notoriety for pointing guns at social justice demonstrators as they marched past the couple’s home last year.

A St. Louis couple who gained notoriety for pointing guns at social justice demonstrators last year have pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges.

Mark McCloskey, a St. Louis lawyer who made national headlines for pointing a rifle at Black Lives Matter protesters last year, announced his run for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday.

A judge has denied a defense request to return to a grand jury the case against a St. Louis couple accused of waving guns at racial injustice protesters last year.

ST. LOUIS – The attorney for a St. Louis couple facing felony charges for waving guns at racial injustice protesters who marched near their home asked a judge Wednesday to remove the city's top prosecutor and her entire office from the case. The McCloskeys' attorney, Joel Schwartz, cites emails referencing the case that were sent to potential donors ahead of Gardner’s primary election victory in August. “There's no place in our system, in our judicial system, for a political trial,” Schwartz told Judge Thomas Clark II. In charging the McCloskeys, Gardner drew criticism from President Donald Trump, Missouri Gov. They've been in frequent contact with Trump, Schwartz said earlier this month and again on Wednesday.

Mark and Patricia McCloskey leave following a court hearing Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020, in St. Louis. St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner originally filed the weapons charge in July. The McCloskeys have blamed the “leftist” Democrats in St. Louis for their plight and have become folk heroes among some conservatives. A few hundred marchers were on their way to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s home when they veered onto a private street made up of million-dollar homes in St. Louis’ posh Central West End. Mark McCloskey emerged from his home armed with an AR-15 rifle and Patricia McCloskey came out with a semiautomatic handgun.

The McCloskey case drew Trump's attention, especially after Democratic St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner filed felony unlawful use of a weapon charges in July. A police probable cause statement said protesters feared being injured due to Patricia McCloskeys finger being on the trigger, coupled with her excited demeanor." They broke the gate down, Patricia McCloskey said on Fox & Friends." They had weapons, they had fire material.Mark McCloskey said on the Fox News program that Democrat-controlled St. Louis is a very dangerous place, and the statistics back him up. The people of St. Louis expect me to pursue equal justice under the law without fear or favor, and that is what I intend to do.Gardner, St. Louis first Black circuit attorney, was elected in 2016 and appears headed to another term.

O'President Donald Trump believes St. Louis top prosecutor committed an egregious abuse of power in charging a couple who displayed guns during a protest against racial injustice last month outside their mansion, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Tuesday. McEnany appeared on the Fox News program Fox & Friends and was asked about St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardners decision to file felony unlawful use of a weapon charges against Mark and Patricia McCloskey. Gardner, St. Louis' first Black circuit attorney, said in an interview with The Associated Press that she will not seek jail time but will recommend a diversion program such as community service. The demonstration on June 28 was among many in St. Louis and across the country in the nearly two months since George Floyd's death in Minneapolis. Parson said Monday evening on The Hannity Show, we were not some bloodthirsty, rampaging mob, state Rep. Rasheen Aldridge said.

FILE - In this June 28, 2020 file photo, armed homeowners Mark and Patricia McCloskey, standing 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. St. Louis top prosecutor told The Associated Press on Monday, July 20, 2020 that she is charging a white husband and wife with felony unlawful use of a weapon for displaying guns during a racial injustice protest outside their mansion. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP File)ST. LOUIS St. Louis top prosecutor told The Associated Press on Monday that she is charging a white husband and wife with felony unlawful use of a weapon for displaying guns during a racial injustice protest outside their mansion. It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening manner that is unlawful in the city of St. Louis, Gardner said. Gardner, St. Louis first Black circuit attorney, has been at odds with some in the St. Louis establishment since her election in 2016.

ST. LOUIS Authorities executed a search warrant at the St. Louis mansion of a white couple whose armed defense of their home during a recent racial injustice protest drew widespread attention, their attorney confirmed Saturday. The video showed Mark McCloskey, 61, wielding a long-barreled gun and Patricia McCloskey, 63 standing next to him waving a handgun. Joel Schwartz, the couple's lawyer, said a search warrant was served Friday evening and that the gun Mark McCloskey was holding in the video was seized. The couple has not been charged, and Schwartz said charges against them would be absolutely, positively unmerited.A search warrant being executed is clear indication of what the circuit attorney's intentions are. Meanwhile, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Saturday that public records and interviews show the McCloskeys are almost always in conflict with others, typically over control of private property.

Armed homeowners standing in front their house along Portland Place confront protesters marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson's house Sunday, June 28, 2020, in the Central West End of St. Louis. O'The white St. Louis couple who became internationally famous for standing guard with guns outside their mansion during a protest have pulled a gun before in defense of their property, according to an affidavit in an ongoing case. The McCloskeys -- hes 63 and shes 61 -- are both personal injury lawyers and their home is on a private street called Portland Place in St. Louis well-to-do Central West End. Details about the legal case were first reported Thursday by St. Louis Post-Dispatch. She looked down, had a gun and screamed for the person to stay off her property, Watkins said.