Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has begun the rare process of moving to force Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner out of office. He explains the standard of proof his office will have to meet, and insists this effort is not political in nature. pic.twitter.com/DEHBg2jU68
— Mark Maxwell (@MarkMaxwellTV) February 23, 2023
Bailey’s call for her removal comes as pressure mounts against Gardner’s office after a 17-year-old volleyball player was critically injured in a crash caused by a suspect who was supposed to be on house arrest. Many local leaders have called the case emblematic of the dysfunction in Gardner’s office.
Janae Edmondson and her family were walking back to their hotel in downtown St. Louis on Saturday when police said 21-year-old Daniel Riley sped down St. Charles Street, failed to brake, hit several cars and pinned Edmondson. She lost both of her legs in the crash.
The I-Team reported Monday that Riley had violated his GPS monitoring conditions at least 90 times since he was first charged with armed criminal action and robbery in September 2020.
RELATED: Parents of volleyball player who lost legs in crash speak at suspect’s detention hearing
Gardner has taken a defensive stance this week as she came under increasing fire amid accusations that failures in her office kept Riley out on bond, in a Wednesday statement accusing a judge of denying her office’s requests to keep the crash suspect behind bars.
That directly opposes a statement from a spokesperson for the 22nd Judicial Circuit that said St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s Office did not file motions to revoke Riley’s bond during the two years leading up to Saturday’s crash despite the dozens of violations of his bond.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s press conference on St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner
https://t.co/P6CfpQMVvN— FOX2now (@FOX2now) February 23, 2023
JEFFERSON CITY, MO. – In an effort to protect the people of St. Louis, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey filed a suit (quo warranto) to remove St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner from office.
“As Attorney General, I want to protect the people of St. Louis, and that includes ensuring prosecutors protect the public,” said Attorney General Andrew Bailey. “We gave Circuit Attorney Gardner the chance to do the right thing and resign, she has refused to do so, and my office filed a quo warranto at 12:01 PM to remove her from office immediately.”
On February 18, 2023, Janae Edmonson, a sixteen-year-old athlete, was walking back to her hotel in downtown St. Louis when she was run down by a speeding vehicle and lost both her legs. One was severed, and the other maimed. Ms. Edmonson survived the crash due to her father’s quick action and emergency medical training, but both of her legs were amputated.
The driver of the speeding vehicle, Daniel Riley, should never have been in that car. He is a dangerous gunman who should have been in jail. In 2020, the St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office charged Riley with First Degree Robbery and Armed Criminal Action for stealing a firearm from a victim at gunpoint. The Circuit Attorney dismissed and refiled that case on July 18, 2022, but not before Riley- who was out on bond- earned 54 separate violations for failing to comply with the pre-trial bond conditions. After the Circuit Attorney refiled the case, Riley earned 50 more violations. The Circuit Attorney never filed a motion to revoke Riley’s bond.
The quo warranto points out that Ms. Edmonson’s injuries are the direct result of years of willful neglect from Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner. As the Circuit Attorney, Respondent is morally, ethically, and legally responsible for the conduct of her office. For years, the Circuit Attorney’s Office has failed to (1) prosecute cases to resolution, (2) has failed to inform and confer with victims, and (3) has failed to even review and file cases submitted by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.
The filing can be found here:
https://ago.mo.gov/docs/default-source/press-releases/petition-in-quo-warranto.pdf?sfvrsn=d36ec88b_2
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