最新杏吧原创

Bam! Bam! Bam!

It wasn鈥檛 an entirely unfamiliar sound. The son of an Army veteran, Gaston moved around a lot as a kid, living on military bases where the sound of ordnance wasn鈥檛 unusual.

It was early June, the same night the 7-Eleven at the corner of 17th and Pine streets burned amid looting and rioting in downtown 最新杏吧原创, following protests about the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Gaston, who is white, was worried about his family and his property. He lived in a condo across the street from the 7-Eleven. There was gunfire and fireworks all around. Gaston didn鈥檛 know it, but four police officers had been shot at a block away.

He was married in December. His wife鈥檚 new car was parked in a lot behind the 7-Eleven. Gaston鈥檚 car was on the street in front of the condo.

鈥淗e felt like he needed to do something to protect his wife and his neighbors,鈥� says Bret Rich, who is Gaston鈥檚 attorney.

The 40-year-old 最新杏吧原创 man is in jail, facing a federal charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The day after the burning of the convenience store across the street, and the killing of 77-year-old retired 最新杏吧原创 police Capt. David Dorn north of there, FBI agents and police officers swarmed the neighborhood, seeking evidence of who fired at police officers.

Gaston didn鈥檛 fire the shotgun he was holding at anybody. But a neighbor or a video spotted him holding it, so FBI agents questioned him and searched his condo. They found guns. He鈥檚 not allowed to have any.

Rich thought about his client Sunday night as he saw the images of two fellow lawyers, Mark and Patricia McCloskey, waving weapons at peaceful protesters who were marching by the McCloskeys鈥� Portland Place mansion in the city鈥檚 Central West End. In photos and videos captured by journalists, the two pointed a handgun and a rifle at the protesters, who were headed to Mayor Lyda Krewson鈥檚 house nearby.

Rich wasn鈥檛 the only one thinking of Gaston. That night, Rich received a text from a relative of Gaston鈥檚, noting that it was unlikely the wealthy white couple living in the home once owned by the Busch family would be visited by FBI agents the next day. (Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner has announced she is investigating the incident.)

The criminal justice world too often has different rules for those with money, and those without.

鈥淚t鈥檚 very difficult in our society once you end up with any kind of criminal record to put that in your past,鈥� Rich says.

Gaston was 17 when Rich met him, just a kid who got in trouble with drugs. One thing led to another. Gaston鈥檚 record is long. Mostly drugs, but also a gun charge. He鈥檚 spent his fair share of time in prison.

Lately, Rich thought Gaston was turning things around. Gaston had what he described as his best job in years, working as a forklift operator for a big company that was providing health insurance and a 401K. He had just been married. His daughter is nearing college graduation.

Then, in a moment where the instinct to protect his family took over, everything he was building collapsed.

鈥淗is motives were to protect his loved ones, and the little bit of property he has in this world,鈥� Rich says. 鈥淭hey really were scared.鈥�

So were the McCloskeys, apparently, as protesters marched by their home, on a street built to keep people like them out, where some of the city鈥檚 wealthiest residents rebuild their historic homes with tax credits from the state that take money away from local schools, because in 最新杏吧原创, and Missouri, income inequality is built into the fabric of society.

Gaston has pleaded not guilty to the federal charge that has him behind bars. Rich is still waiting for documents from the U.S. attorney鈥檚 office to know what kind of case his client faces. In the meantime, Gaston is in the City Justice Center, considered such a danger to society that he is being held with no bond.

He鈥檚 the yin to the McCloskeys鈥� yang. They are free.

Gaston is still being punished for the sins of a past he cannot escape.