Mark McCloskey, who along with his wife grabbed weapons to defend their St. Louis home from demonstrators who were protesting police brutality, had previously represented a victim of police brutality.
“The man – who was identified by the initials I.F. – was kicked and struck by police officer David Maas in shocking dashcam footage that appeared to show him surrendering,” The Daily Mail reported. “The initials match a 2019 civil lawsuit made by Isaiah Forman in which the same allegations are put forward. “
Police at the time said Forman, then 21, was driving a car that had been taken by another man at gunpoint. The lawsuit against Maas claimed that Forman had ‘surrendered peaceably’.
According to the indictment, Maas kicked and struck Forman in April 2019 while the man was compliant and not posing a physical threat to anyone, causing ‘bodily injury’ and depriving him of his right to be ‘free from unreasonable force.’
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A lawyer for Maas argued that Forman had ‘aggressively resisted arrest’ and ‘struck a police vehicle, narrowly missing a police officer in the process.’ Maas was charged with one count of deprivation of rights under color of law in March 2020. Mr. McCloskey said of the case: ‘I’m glad that the law enforcement agencies are subject to the same standard as everybody else.’
Forman pleaded guilty to crashing his car into a police vehicle during the chase and is serving a seven year sentence for second-degree assault on a special victim.
Husband and wife Mark and Patricia McCloskey, could be seen on Twitter posts aiming the weapons at the protesters in the wealthy section of the city Forest Park area about 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Outside their large house called the Niemann Mansion, the husband strapped on the AR-15 as the wife moved about on the lawn brandishing the handgun.
“A couple has come out of their house and is pointing guns at protesters in their neighborhood,” one person wrote on Twitter.
A couple has come out of their house and is pointing guns at protesters in their neighborhood #StLouis #lydakrewson pic.twitter.com/ZJ8a553PAU
— Daniel Shular (@xshularx) June 29, 2020
“[H]ere’s what happens when you march on Portland Place in St. Louis, MO,” another wrote. “[T]hey’re scared of their own community.”
here’s what happens when you march on Portland Place in St. Louis, MO
they’re scared of their own community pic.twitter.com/Ng8qW1Pa6C
— avery (@averyrisch) June 29, 2020
The homeowners weren’t wrong — protesters have trashed St. Louis, smashing store windows and toppling statues they deem offensive.
“The protesters were en route to Mayor Lyda Krewson’s home to demand her resignation after she released the names and addresses of residents who had suggested defunding the police department.,” the Daily Mail wrote. “They had broken their way into the gated community where the McCloskeys live. The pair are both personal injury lawyers and run McCloskey Law Center from inside their extravagant home.
