ST. LOUIS – The effort to remove Kim Gardner as Circuit Attorney is not without precedent. FOX 2 spoke with an attorney who successfully prosecuted another St. Louis official under the same tactic.
The legal term for this action against Gardner is a filing called “quo warranto.” Missouri’s Attorney General must prove to a judge that the St. Louis Circuit Attorney is not fit to serve.
Let’s not forget what brought us here. The heart-wrenching catastrophe that changed a family’s life forever. Janae Edmondson and her family were visiting St. Louis from Tennessee for a volleyball tournament.
Janae, 17, lost her legs when a violent crash flew onto the sidewalk where she was walking. The driver responsible, a violent suspect who no one seems to argue, should have been in jail. He’s locked up now, with a detention hearing scheduled for Monday.
Janae’s GoFundMe has reached nearly half a million dollars. It includes the latest update on her medical condition. On Feb. 23, an entry says Janae was recently “able to interact with her parents and her sister.” It adds, “This was a blessing for them to see her open her eyes and engage with the room.” It also mentions that after four surgeries, doctors call her a fighter.
After fallout from the crash caused by a violent suspect, who’d violated house arrest 51 times with no consequence, Gardner said at a news conference, “While it is true that my office could have done more, to say that we did nothing is disingenuous.”
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey intends to prove Gardner wrong. We asked former Circuit Court Judge Jack Garvey what we can expect. He knows because he successfully prosecuted former St. Louis License Collector Billie Boykins in 1989 after an audit found she failed to collect millions in taxes.
Garvey, who is now a private attorney with Stranch, Jennings and Garvey, says the Attorney General must prove willful violation or neglect of official duty. He must prove it to a judge, not a jury. Court proceedings could take about six months. If the action is successful, he says a Supreme Court Marshall will come and serve her personally.
In essence, it would be a forcible removal of office that could begin with law enforcement removing furniture and property from the office.
FOX 2 asked the Circuit Attorney’s office if Gardner has hired a defense attorney. The office says they are reviewing the motion and determining next steps.
The entire 22nd Circuit had asked the Supreme Court to be recused from the case because of the possibility of judges being called to testify. In response, the Supreme Court appointed a special judge for this case. The honorable John Torbitzky, of the Eastern District Missouri Court of Appeals will come here to St. Louis to preside.