ST. LOUIS — May 30, 2024, marked exactly one year since St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore was sworn into the position. This was after his predecessor Kim Gardner stepped down that very same month in 2023.
Gore was dedicated to rebuilding the office and the trust in the community. He was tasked to tackle a heavy backlog.
His focus was to hire leadership. When he took his oath to serve, just two supervisors were overseeing the entire office.
"That's a huge lack of senior leadership. The success of any organization is premised on leadership," Gore told 5 On Your Side.
The number of supervisors went from two to 10 in a year.
The second priority was to increase attorneys on staff. When he arrived, there were 22 trial attorneys.
"We're currently at 45 attorneys, and we need to be at 60 attorneys or so to be effective, that's down 25% so even though we made a lot of progress, that's quite a ways to go," Gore said.
Seven recent law school graduates are expected to join the office in the fall.
Because there was a lack of attorneys, the caseloads grew.
"After we were here for a few weeks, we realized that the number was closer to 6,700 unreviewed applications for warrants," Gore said.
Nine of those were homicide cases. Also in the mix were hundreds of violent felonies, including rapes, assaults and carjackings.
These warrants are when police apply for charges against defendants. The Circuit Attorney's Office has 24 hours to make charging decisions and if they don't, the suspect will be released.
Gore said, "That number stands at 2,600. So, good process for one year, but we have more work to do to get rid of warrant office backlog."
The goal is to have zero warrant applications and to review these applications in a timely manner, he said.
There was also a backlog of 250 homicide cases. The office cleared 70 homicides in the past year. There are currently 237 homicides, which include new cases pending.
"Getting some violent offenders, who have been basically operating with impunity and probably emboldened by that, getting those violent offenders off the street, I have no doubt that that work has saved lives," Gore said.
Gore's initial priority is the same 365 days later: increase staff and lower cases.
Right now, the office has a caseload more than double its historic size and remains understaffed. The long-term goal is to invest in training, more technology and increase salaries to hire more.
He explained four attorneys have left for increased pay and acknowledged the competitiveness of private sectors.
Gore also had a message for reckless driving.
In April, 22-year-old Daniel Riley was sentenced to nearly 19 years for causing a car crash, which severed both legs of 17-year-old Janae Edmondson. Edmondson was a high school student from Tennessee, and she was in St. Louis to compete in a volleyball tournament.
“We have sent a simple message to those who are wreaking havoc in our city by choosing to ignore traffic laws: Reckless driving will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Gore said.
Gore also created a conviction integrity unit. This team looks at any claims of innocence.
Just last week, Gore testified in the closing arguments to vacate a murder conviction against Christopher Dunn, a St. Louis man locked up for more than 30 years.
Gore said this week, final briefs on the case were submitted.
Gore added, "When we perceive injustice has occurred, we’re going work to correct that and I think that’s an important message to the community, demonstrating that’s how we operate deepens and enhances our relationship with community."
Beyond that, Gore explained they continue to work with organizations.
At the end of June, Gore said he met with 80 community organizations and neighborhood associations to continue to build a relationship.
Gore is running unopposed in the November election for a four-year term as circuit attorney beginning in January 2025.
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