ST. LOUIS — Attorney General Andrew Bailey is not backing down in his fight to oust St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, claiming she's not doing her job.
Tuesday, Gardner responded to Bailey's allegations in a legal filing. The filing was submitted on the deadline the judge provided, a week before the case heads to court.
Baily said nearly 12,000 criminal cases have been dismissed to what he calls Gardner’s failures. He says more than 9,000 cases were thrown out as they were about to go to trial, forcing judges to dismiss more than 2,000 cases due to what Bailey cites as Gardner's failure to provide defendants with evidence and speedy trials. He claims a toxic environment is running attorney's away from her office.
"His amended petition is a gross power grab," Gardner responded Tuesday, "an affront to the liberties of all Missourians and the democratic process."
The circuit attorney said the law allows for removal of an elected official for willful neglect, failure or refusal to perform duties. Gardner said there is no corrupt intentional acts of misconduct or failure to perform her official duties. She goes on to say "If the Attorney General or the political interests behind his petition were truly concerned about crime in St. Louis, they would seek to assist with resources."
"This rarely occurred in the history of Missouri," Bailey said previously. "That speaks to what a bad situation we have here in the City of St. Louis and the necessity for immediate action to restore law and order and to find justice for victims. That's what motivates me.”
"This is voter suppression from the 1960s," Gardner said recently at a town hall forum. "I read about this in school but I never, they're taking it back. It's tough sometimes but at the end of the day, I fight so hard because you all told me you don't want the same old same old.”
Bailey also alleges Gardner's attorneys have failed to appear in court, failed to keep victims’ families informed about cases, and that cases police have worked on continue to wait on prosecutors to review. Gardner says at most, there could be alleged negligence but not willful neglect.
To read Gardner's full response, click here.