After a five-year legal conflict involving several lawsuits and appeals, a St. Louis couple who displayed firearms to defend their property during a protest by Black Lives Matter demonstrators has successfully regained possession of their AR-15 rifle.

Mark and Patricia McCloskey, amid the intensity of the George Floyd protests in 2020, chose to use intimidation methods to protect their home after a crowd of protesters breached a gate and marched onto a private street.

The McCloskeys stated that the protesters threatened their family while chanting for BLM. Among the participants in that protest was former Missouri Rep. Cori Bush (D).

Kim Gardner, who was the St. Louis Circuit Attorney and a Democrat at the time, reacted to the event by accusing the McCloskeys of confronting the protesters with “guns and violent assault.”

They hadn’t, not by any stretch of the imagination.

The couple eventually admitted to misdemeanor charges and agreed to surrender their weapons, although they were eventually pardoned by former Missouri Governor Mike Parson (R).

Mr. McCloskey celebrated finally getting his gun back with a message on X Friday.

“It only took 3 lawsuits, 2 trips to the Court of Appeals, and 1,847 days, but I got my AR15 back!” Mark McCloskey remarked, sharing images of their reunion and some from the notable incident that initiated the Second Amendment discussion.

It only took 3 lawsuits, 2 trips to the Court of Appeals and 1,847 days, but I got my AR15 back! We defended our home, were persecuted by the left, smeared by the press, and threatened with death, but we never backed down

What’s missing-Patty and the Bryco (soon) pic.twitter.com/NOEyzyXZWM

— Mark McCloskey (@mccloskeyusa) August 1, 2025