Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said Tuesday he will appoint an interim ºüÀêÊÓƵ prosecutor by Friday following the sudden departure of Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner.Â
ST. LOUIS — The city’s top prosecutor announced Tuesday that she would resign immediately, more than two weeks earlier than expected, sending state and local officials scrambling to patch yet another hole in an office that has already lost key leaders.
The timing of Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner’s resignation — she initially said she would quit June 1 — scuttled an early plan to hand off some responsibilities to ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Prosecutor Wesley Bell. His spokesman said the office was ready to help, but Gardner’s surprise exit left the plan in limbo.
By day’s end, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said he would appoint a replacement by Friday. He tapped his general counsel, Evan Rodriguez, to fill in until the appointee can start, with help from the Attorney General’s office.
“This is a very unprecedented situation,†said Bill Corrigan, a lawyer for Attorney General Andrew Bailey. “A very volatile, very fluid situation.â€
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In her resignation announcement Tuesday, Gardner said she was committed to serving the people of ºüÀêÊÓƵ and had “done all she can to ensure a smooth transition.â€
Gardner’s abrupt departure throws into further chaos a city courts system that’s already bending under the weight of a staffing exodus, organizational dysfunction, a leadership vacuum and a backlog of several thousand cases. Her office lost roughly a third of its attorneys in two months, and two judges filed to hold her in contempt of court after prosecutors didn’t show up for scheduled hearings or trials.
The departure comes amid months of mounting criticism of Gardner’s office. Bailey filed suit earlier this year to remove her from office, and Missouri lawmakers filed a bill seeking to strip her of most of her power. Gardner struck a deal to step down in exchange for lawmakers dropping the bill.
Bell and Gardner, both elected as progressive prosecutors who promised to reform the criminal justice system and review wrongful convictions, have been in talks since at least last week about a plan to rebuild her office. He was seen visiting her office with top aides last week and visiting again on Monday and Tuesday this week.
But it was not publicly clear until Tuesday just how closely the two had been working.
First, Gardner in her resignation called their plan “comprehensive†and directed questions about city cases to Bell’s office.
Then, in a news conference that afternoon, Bell spokesman Chris King revealed that Bell was given security access to Gardner’s office, two county attorneys were training in the city warrant office, and Bell’s office expected to begin charging cases in the city on Tuesday.
Gardner had even issued an order seeking to appoint Bell as an assistant prosecutor in the city before she resigned Tuesday morning, but that move needed approval from a judge, and no ruling was made on Tuesday, King said.
“We’re here. We’re ready to work,†he said in a hall packed with reporters outside Gardner’s office. “But we’re not sure what our legal standing is.â€
After announcing the intended collaboration — without details — last week, Bell was criticized by a ºüÀêÊÓƵ County councilman who argued Bell should have to get council approval before “using any county resources†to help Gardner’s office.
Bailey, the attorney general, said in a statement Tuesday evening he would send Corrigan, the attorney who led the lawsuit seeking Gardner’s removal, and several others to ºüÀêÊÓƵ to receive charging referrals from police and “start the process of clearing the backlog of cases.â€
“We need somebody in there right now,†Parson said, “just to stabilize things and make sure we’re doing the functions of the prosecutor’s office to make sure we’re going after hardcore criminals in this city and this state.â€
Corrigan said the Attorney General’s Office will meet with city prosecutors on Wednesday. He anticipates state attorneys will appear in court on behalf of the city and help clear cases.
“Our expectation is we’ll do whatever it takes,†Corrigan said.
Rodriguez, Parson’s temporary pick for the circuit attorney’s job, joined Parson’s office in February. Then 28, he had previously worked as a legislative analyst for the Missouri House and at the Missouri Attorney General’s Office.
Area counties said Tuesday they’d help, too: Prosecutors in St. Charles, Jefferson, Franklin, Lincoln, Warren and ºüÀêÊÓƵ counties released a joint statement saying they’ve pledged to help Parson’s appointee “in any manner we can.â€
Restoring faith in the prosecutor’s office, ºüÀêÊÓƵ Mayor Tishaura O. Jones said Tuesday, is “critical to a functional criminal justice system.†She thanked Parson for “engaging ºüÀêÊÓƵ’ elected and community leaders as he makes this critical decision.â€
Parson said the roughly 20 applicants to replace Gardner were an “extremely talented pool†and political party would not be a factor in his pick.
“It’s not going to be a political appointment,†he said. “It’s about who I think will go in there and do the best job to right the ship in the City of ºüÀêÊÓƵ.â€