ST. LOUIS — A judge said the St. Louis circuit attorney has two weeks to respond to the allegations made against her by the Missouri Attorney General.
Judge John Torbitzky gave the 14-day deadline in a filing Monday. Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner is the subject of a "petition of quo warranto" filed by Attorney General Andrew Bailey. Bailey wants to remove Gardner from office.
Gardner must file her plea, or response, to the petition and send a copy to Bailey's office. Gardner can remain in office while this petition plays out in court.
On Monday, Bailey filed another motion setting a deposition date for Gardner on April 14. The motion said the deposition will be videotaped and a stenographer will be present.
Gardner's office is under scrutiny after the handling of a high-profile case. A 17-year-old volleyball player was critically injured in a crash caused by a suspect who was supposed to be on house arrest. Gardner said her office can't force a judge to make a decision to keep someone in jail or allow them to be on house arrest. She maintains her office was not negligent.
Some local and state leaders have called the case emblematic of the dysfunction in Gardner's office.
Bailey accuses Gardner of three things:
- She has failed to prosecute cases that are pending in her jurisdiction
- She has failed to confer and inform victims of the procedural posture and ultimate disposition in criminal cases
- She has neglected her duties by failing to charge new cases referred to her by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department
Read the judge's order here.
Bailey is a Republican and Gardner is a Democrat. Gardner was elected to her four-year term in 2020 with 74% of the vote.