St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner is a radical leftist supported by Democratic megadonor George Soros. She is being investigated for criminal contempt for not completing her job, and she announced her resignation from her position on Thursday after coming under fire from the state’s Republican attorney general.
She issued a statement in which she stated, “Unfortunately, since I became the first Black woman prosecutor in the State, people from outside the city have been after me and, to get what they want, have also been after the basic rights of the city’s voters.”
She gave the example of a measure that has recently begun hearings in the Missouri state legislature and would “permanently take away the right of every voter in St. Louis to vote for their Circuit Attorney,” the sole elected post in the city’s criminal justice system. Instead, the Governor would be able to appoint the city’s top prosecutor under this law.
She compared the effort to remove her to the one that led to the ouster of a state attorney supported by George Soros in Florida last year by Governor Ron DeSantis. Last week, another Florida state attorney who accepts Soros funding said she expects to be fired by DeSantis in the near future. DeSantis is the first governor to have fired a Soros-appointed attorney.
When asked about the current measure, she claimed, “This latest bill is part of a coordinated, long-running plan to hurt me and my efforts to make St. Louis safer and fairer.” Since the day I took office as Circuit Attorney, I’ve been called out on numerous fronts: reforms, judgment, integrity, prosecutorial discretion, responsibility for managing limited resources, etc.
In her remarks, Gardner constantly cast herself in the role of victim. She claimed that her detractors were obstructing her office’s operations by filing several “records requests” in an effort to undermine her. She said that it was difficult for her “hard-working line attorneys” to accomplish their duties if they were chastised.
She stated, “I can take those attacks, and I have,” adding that residents of her community were being denied their constitutional protections and that prosecutors were unable to do their duties.
I would work hard every day to retain the job you picked for me if it weren’t for these two things, she remarked. The most effective thing I can do to prevent these outsiders from stealing your rights and opinions is to withdraw.
On June 1st, 2023, she will officially leave.
Due to Gardner and Assistant Circuit Attorney Chris Desilets’ repeated absences from court, Missouri Judge Michael Noble announced last week that he was assigning a special investigator to establish a criminal contempt case against them.
Noble stated in court, “The office of the circuit attorney seems to be a ship without a captain and full of chaos.” As the circuit attorney, it is Ms. Gardner’s responsibility to handle legal matters for all employees. Mr. Desilets is facing around 104 criminal accusations. Any competent expert would recognize that so many cases would generate intractable issues. It appears that she has done little to quell the mayhem. It appears that Ms. Gardner has little regard for or interest in the judicial system.
Noble even went so far as to argue that the facts indicate their disrespectful behavior qualifies as criminal.
If you ask Noble, “It looks like Ms. Gardner doesn’t care about the court system at all and doesn’t respect it.” Indirect criminal contempt should be found against both Ms. Gardner and Mr. Desilets because of their disrespectful behavior toward the judicial system. Going against a court’s verdict is also a purposeful act of disobedience that demonstrates a lack of respect for the judicial system’s authority.
Gardner was already facing a campaign to have her removed from office by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey on the grounds that she wasn’t doing enough to defend victims of crime.
Getting justice for victims of crime is a top priority for me as Attorney General,” Bailey added. However, Gardner, the Circuit Attorney, is creating victims rather than preventing them. My department will make every effort to restore peace and quiet to St. Louis and end the mayhem that Kim Gardner’s neglectful management of her office has caused.
It’s only been a few days since Garnder announced, “I’m not going,” but now we hear that she actually is leaving. I won’t be leaving. I’m at a loss for a plan of action. My removal is mandatory.