“We remain undeterred with our legal quest to forcibly remove her from office. “There is absolutely no reason for the Circuit Attorney to remain in office until June 1st,” Bailey said in a statement. Rizzo said Gardner had planned to announce her resignation Wednesday but delayed after an assistant prosecutor in her office died in a fiery crash around 5 p.m.īailey said he wants Gardner to leave immediately.
Louis remains in critical need of reform and support.” Republican House leaders on Thursday released a statement pressuring the GOP-led Senate to act on the bill anyway, arguing that even with Gardner gone “the criminal justice system in St. Louis prosecutor’s office are no longer needed, and he thinks Senate Republicans agree. Republicans “were completely dialed in on attacking Kim Gardner for her methods,” Rizzo said. She began talks with Republican Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden about the possibility of resigning when she realized that if she didn't, the bill likely would become law and hamstring her and future prosecutors, Rizzo said.
“Some of these attacks seem designed to stop the office from functioning, at the expense of public safety,” Gardner said.ĭemocratic Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo said Gardner called him a few days ago to assess the probability of lawmakers passing the bill by their May 12 deadline. “Since day one of my tenure as Circuit Attorney, I have experienced attacks on my reforms, on my judgment, on my integrity, on my prosecutorial discretion, on my responsibility to direct the limited resources of this office and more,” Gardner said in her letter. “It is hard to think of a more direct or brutal assault on our democracy. Gardner's resignation letter also cited legislative efforts on a bill that would allow Parson to appoint a special prosecutor to handle violent crimes, effectively removing the bulk of her responsibilities. A hearing on whether Gardner should be removed had been scheduled for September. Gardner said Bailey’s efforts to remove her were politically and racially motivated. Bailey said too many cases, including homicides, have gone unpunished under Gardner’s watch, that victims and their families are left uninformed, and that the prosecutor’s office is too slow to take on cases brought by police.
Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey took legal steps to remove Gardner from office in February. Parson in a statement said he will immediately begin looking for a replacement and that he is “committed to finding a candidate who represents the community, values public safety, and can help restore faith in the City’s criminal justice system.” Mike Parson released by Gardner's office, she said she will step aside effective June 1. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, the city's first Black prosecutor and a Democrat, announced Thursday that she will resign, following allegations of negligence and calls for her ouster by Republican leaders.
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