https://www.foxnews.com/us/who-is-kimberly-gardner-st-louis-prosecutor
The standoff between a gun-toting couple who stood in their front yard and peaceful protesters who marched through the private neighborhood is under investigation, according to St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner's office.
Gardner, who was elected in 2016 on a platform of reforming the criminal justice system, was reportedly backed by liberal billionaire George Soros.
Since being elected, Gardner has butted heads publicly with Missouri’s Republican attorney general and faced lawsuits for allegedly ignoring public records requests.
In a statement Monday, Gardner described the encounter between married lawyers Mark and Patricia McCloskey and the protesters as “a violent assault” against those exercising their First Amendment rights.
“I am alarmed at the events that occurred over the weekend, where peaceful protesters were met by guns and a violent assault,” Gardner said. “We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation or threat of deadly force will not be tolerated.”
She said her office was working with the police department to investigate the confrontation, adding that authorities “will use the full power of Missouri law to hold people accountable.”
No charges were filed against the couple as of Tuesday morning.
“If Kimberly Gardner wants to press charges against two attorneys who are protecting their home and their family and themselves on their own property, I will tell you that it will be nothing short of the proverbial clusterf— with the ensuing assertions that she's doing this for political purposes,” Watkins said.
"And I will tell you that as a person, I don't believe that to be what she is doing,” Watkins added. “I just believe she probably has a difficult time reading the English language.”