Missouri Supreme Court won't let McCloskeys work with right-wing media group while on probation

The Missouri Supreme Court has rejected the request of Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the St. Louis lawyers who brandished guns at Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020, to provide pro bono legal services to Project Veritas, a right-wing media group, as a condition of their probation.

Earlier this year, the court indefinitely suspended the McCloskeys’ law licenses but stayed their suspensions and placed them on probation for a year. As a condition of their probation, they are required to provide 100 hours of pro bono legal services to organizations that provide free legal services for poor or indigent Missouri residents.

In March, the couple asked Missouri’s Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel to approve Project Veritas as such an organization, but the office turned down their request. The office said that Project Veritas “does not provide legal services without charge to or on behalf of poor or indigent Missouri residents.”

The McCloskeys then sought approval from the Missouri Supreme Court, arguing that the conduct for which they were punished, namely waving guns at peaceful protesters, “did not relate to conduct that targeted or caused particular harm to poor or indigent persons.”