Couple who pointed guns at protesters tell Republican convention that suburbs in peril

Patricia and Mark McCloskey of St. Louis, Missouri, who confronted protestors outside their home while holding weapons, speak by video feed during the largely virtual 2020 Republican National Convention broadcast from Washington, U.S. August 24, 2020. 2020 Republican National Convention/Handout via REUTERS

(Reuters) - A white St. Louis couple who brandished guns at Black Lives Matter protesters outside their home in June were given a prominent speaking slot at the Republican National Convention on Monday, repeating unfounded claims by President Donald Trump that Democrats will destroy America's suburbs.

Speaking amid new protests over the police shooting of a Black man in Wisconsin on Sunday, Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who face felony weapons charges for threatening protesters with guns, said U.S. neighbourhoods would be overrun by crime and lawlessness if Democrat Joe Biden wins in November.