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Former Missouri Governor Greitens announces U.S. Senate bid, during live Fox News interview

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A former Missouri governor who resigned three years ago announced Monday on national television that he’s running for the U.S. Senate in 2022.

Former Missouri Governor Eric Greitens speaks to reporters in downtown St. Louis on May 14, 2018, after the felony invasion of privacy charge against him was dismissed (file photo courtesy of Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Current U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) will not seek re-election next year, which will leave the seat open for the 2022 election cycle.

Republican Eric Greitens was elected as Missouri’s governor in 2016 and resigned in 2018, 17 months after taking office. He announced Monday on Fox News’ “Special Report” that he’s running for the Senate in 2022.

Greitens says Missouri needs a fighter in the Senate.

“They need somebody who’s going to go as I will, as I’m committed to do, to defending President Trump’s America first policies and also to protecting the people of Missouri from (President) Joe Biden, (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and (Senate Majority Leader) Chuck Schumer’s radical leftist agenda,” Greitens told host Bret Baier.

Greitens has criticized President Biden, saying he’s created a border catastrophe.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s office announced in 2018 that they dismissed a computer tampering case against Greitens, in exchange for the governor’s resignation. The charge involved Greitens’ alleged attempt to take a donor list from his former charity, the Mission Continues, without the permission of charity officials.

Baier also asked Greitens about allegations that he took a nonconsensual photo of a partially nude woman without her consent. Greitens, who has admitted to an extramarital affair with the woman, has denied any criminal wrongdoing. During the Fox News interview, Greitens blasted St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gardner.

“As you know, the George Soros-funded prosecutor who went after us, her investigator has now been charged with seven felonies for perjury and evidence tampering,” Greitens says.

Greitens is referring to William Don Tisaby, who’s case hasn’t gone to trial yet.

Gardner’s office dropped the invasion of privacy charge against Greitens, when a judge ruled that Gardner could be called as a witness by the defense. The case then was assigned to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker, who declined to file charges. Baker said her office did not have sufficient evidence to consider filing new charges against Greitens in the case, and said Gardner’s office did not provide all of the documents in the case.

When Gardner’s office dropped the invasion of privacy charge against Greitens, he still faced heavy criticism from Missouri House and Senate Republican and Democratic leaders, along with possible impeachment.

Then-Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard (R-Joplin) and then-Senate Majority Leader Mike Kehoe (R-Jefferson City) called for Governor Greitens to testify before a Missouri House committee in 2018. Richard and Kehoe said then that Greitens had lost the moral authority to lead the state, and called for his resignation.

Former House Speaker and former U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway, who represented Greitens’ campaign staff, blasted that House committee’s investigation. She accused the chairman, then-State Rep. Jay Barnes (R-Jefferson City), of playing politics.

Greitens’ resignation took effect on June 1, 2018.

As for Senator Blunt, he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010 and is finishing his second Senate term. The seat was previously held by U.S. Sen. Kit Bond (R), who served four terms from 1987-2010.

The last Democrat to hold the seat was U.S. Sen. Tom Eagleton, who served three terms until he retired in 1986.

Filing for the position begins next February in Jefferson City.

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Lamar Johnson’s appeal rejected by Missouri Supreme Court; Missouri AG and Gardner on opposite sides in case

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The Missouri Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from convicted murderer Lamar Johnson of St. Louis, a case that has received national media attention. It’s also a case that has attracted attention from elected prosecutors from across the nation and Missouri.

47-year-old Lamar Johnson is serving a life sentence for first degree murder at the Jefferson City Correctional Center (2019 file photo courtesy of the Missouri Department of Corrections)

The 47-year-old Johnson has been incarcerated since 1995, serving a life sentence without parole for first degree murder for killing Marcus Boyd in 1994 in St. Louis. Since then, Johnson’s co-defendant, Phillip Campbell, signed an affidavit saying that Johnson wasn’t involved in the murder. An eyewitness recanted his identification of Johnson, and signed an affidavit that he received monetary payments from the state.

In 2019, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner filed a motion for a new trial in Johnson’s case, saying that Johnson was convicted based on police and prosecutorial misconduct. The circuit court ultimately concluded it had no authority to decide the motion, and Johnson appealed.

The Supreme Court of Missouri heard remote oral arguments in the case in April 2020, and issued its decision Tuesday.

“In conclusion, this case is not about whether Johnson is innocent or whether there exists a remedy for someone who is innocent and did not receive a constitutionally fair trial. This case presents only the issue of whether there is any authority to appeal the dismissal of a motion for a new trial filed decades after a criminal conviction became final. No such authority exists; therefore, this court dismisses the appeal,” the Supreme Court writes. All seven judges agreed Johnson’s appeal should be dismissed.

In a separate opinion, Missouri Chief Justice George Draper III said he believes a prosecutor may seek to overturn a wrongful conviction through a court rule allowing a party to file a motion to seek relief from a final judgment in certain circumstances.

Supreme Court Judge Laura Denvir Stith has also written a separate opinion, and says she believes a petition for a writ of habeas corpus could provide a mechanism for Johnson to seek relief.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gardner are on different sides in the Johnson case. The chief counsel for criminal appeals for the attorney general’s office, Shaun Mackelsprang, argued the case last April before the Missouri Supreme Court.

“A jury found him (Johnson) guilty, found him guilty of murder in the first degree and armed criminal action. To this day, there has not been a hearing with any evidence presented showing that he is, in fact, innocent,” Mackelsprang told the court in April 2020.

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Parson and Galloway blast each other repeatedly during Missouri gubernatorial debate

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Missouri’s two major gubernatorial candidates clashed during a Friday afternoon debate in Columbia on numerous issues, including Clean Missouri, COVID, Medicaid expansion and valet parking at the Capitol.

The debate, which took place at the Missouri Theatre in Columbia, was sponsored by the Missouri Press Association.

Missouri voters approved Clean Missouri in November 2018. It had several provisions, including one requiring a nonpartisan demographer to draw state legislative districts.

Governor Mike Parson (R) opposed Clean Missouri and supports Amendment Three, which will appear on your November ballot. Amendment Three transfers the responsibility of drawing the districts from the demographer to a governor-appointed bipartisan commission.

“None of the big money behind this ever talked about how the redistricting would work, they talked about everything but that (in 2018),” Parson says. “This is a major shift in how we do elections in the state of Missouri.”

But Auditor Nicole Galloway, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, disagrees. She backed Clean Missouri in 2018 and opposes Amendment Three.

“In November of 2018, over 60 percent of voters said they want a fair, transparent government and they wanted to get rid of gerrymandering,” says Galloway.

The candidates also blasted each other over COVID. Galloway says Missouri physicians support a statewide mask requirement.

“Because it is a proven way to contain the spread of the virus, protect the public health, get our economy going again,” Galloway says.

Governor Parson says he’s taken a balanced approach on COVID and has also emphasized the importance of personal protective equipment (PPE).

“You’ve got to be able to deal with the virus, you got to be able to deal with the economy, you’ve got to get kids back in school safely,” Parson says.

They also clashed over the recent special session on violent crime, with Galloway saying the governor “struck out.”

The Legislature did approve two of Governor Parson’s top priorities during the special session: a witness protection program and legislation eliminating the residency requirement for St. Louis police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel. But the Legislature did not pass the governor’s proposals regarding juvenile certification and one involving St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s (D) office.

Governor Parson says the special session was successful, and will help against violent crime.

The two candidates also had differing opinions on the cost of Medicaid expansion and also clashed on valet parking at the State Capitol in Jefferson City, an issue that hasn’t been talked about much during the campaign.

Governor Parson accuses Galloway of politicizing her office, and Galloway says Parson has failed the test of leadership.

Libertarian nominee Rik Combs and Green Party nominee Jerome Bauer also participated in the debate, which was produced by KOMU-TV in Columbia. The debate aired live in mid-Missouri on Channel 8.

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Missouri’s governor releases $133 million in funding; says he’d pardon the McCloskeys

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Missouri’s governor has announced that he is releasing about $133 million in funding that was previously withheld, saying the state’s unemployment rate has improved and state revenues outpaced expectations.

Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City

Governor Mike Parson (R) made the announcement Wednesday afternoon in Jefferson City, while addressing Capitol reporters. He’s releasing $95 million in CARES Act funding and $40 million in general revenue. The governor says $61 million of the CARES Act funding will go to K-12 education.

“These funds will be disbursed to school districts through DESE similar to the (education) foundation formula,” Parson says.

The funds will be distributed through the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) on a per-pupil basis.

Missouri Education Commissioner Dr. Margie Vandeven says schools continue to face unprecedented challenges this school year. She says the added expenses of operating schools during the pandemic has been a challenge, and that the money released by the governor will help.

Governor Parson says Missouri’s unemployment rate is less than half than originally projected.

“When we made those conservative budget decisions (budget restrictions), the projection was that Missouri’s unemployment rate would be around 16.3 (percent). However, our current unemployment rate is actually seven percent,” says Parson.

The governor says another factor is that September general revenue collections increased three percent from September 2019, from $917 million to $944 million this year.

About $10 million of the funding will be used to reimburse private colleges and universities for COVID-related expenses, including money spent to bring students back to campus safely.

The governor was also asked by a St. Louis television reporter about this week’s indictment of the McCloskeys in St. Louis.

Governor Parson is reiterating that he is prepared to pardon the St. Louis couple indicted for pointing guns at protesters outside their Central West End home in July. The governor says he would pardon Mark and Patricia McCloskey.

“Most certainly would, most certainly would,” Parson says. “We’ll let it play out and see how this all comes out in the courts, but I stand by what I said.”

A St. Louis City grand jury indicted the McCloskeys on Tuesday for unlawful use of a weapon and evidence tampering.

The McCloskeys addressed the Republican National Convention in August, saying they feared for their safety that evening. But St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, a Democrat, says the protesters were nonviolent. She has described the McCloskeys’ conduct as “unacceptable.”

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Missouri’s governor pleased with special session on crime; wants House to approve Gardner legislation

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While Missouri’s governor is pleased with the special session on violent crime, he’s calling on the House to approve his proposal involving St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s office.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson briefs Capitol reporters on August 10, 2020 in Jefferson City, as Attorney General Eric Schmitt listens (file photo courtesy of the governor’s Flickr page)

GOP Governor Mike Parson told Capitol reporters last week that he will meet with House leaders about it.

“We’re encouraging them to pass this to be able to give law enforcement the tools they need to fight (violent crime). I’m not sure what they’ll do, again we’ll have a meeting with them to discuss that,” Parson says.

The Senate has approved the governor’s proposal, which would allow Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s (R) office to take on some murder cases that haven’t been prosecuted yet by Gardner’s office. Circuit Attorney Gardner, a Democrat, and the bipartisan Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys oppose that plan.

Governor Parson is also praising the General Assembly’s bipartisan passage of witness protection legislation, a key component of his special session call on violent crime. The governor thanks the two bill sponsors: State Rep. Dr. Jonathan Patterson, R-Lee’s Summit, and State Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville. He says the bill will help fight crime.

“Which creates a pretrial witness protection fund, in which law enforcement agencies can provide resources for the security of victims, witnesses and their immediate families,” says Parson.

The fund would provide security in criminal proceedings and investigations. The Senate approved the bill 29-0, and it passed the House on a 147-3 vote.

Meantime, legislation eliminating the residency requirement for St. Louis police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel is also on the governor’s desk. St. Louis has recorded 192 homicides this year, and the governor says the residency bill will improve public safety.

“The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department is currently down by more than 140 officers, and this legislation can help fill that gap,” Parson says.

St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden has traveled to Jefferson City multiple times during the special session to testify for the bill, saying his department “desperately needs more officers” due to the surge in violence. Chief Hayden says the city has been averaging more than nine homicides per week. St. Louis had 32 homicides in June and 53 in July.

The Missouri Police Chiefs Association and the St. Louis Police Officers Association testified for the legislation, which is sponsored by State Rep. Ron Hicks, R-Dardenne Prairie.

Bill opponents say St. Louis residents feel safer with police officers living in their neighborhoods.

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Flags to fly at half-staff Sunday in St. Louis for fallen officer Bohannon

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Missouri’s governor has ordered U.S. and Missouri flags to fly at half-staff at all government buildings in St. Louis on Sunday, to honor the St. Louis Police officer who was shot and killed in the line of duty last weekend.

Officer Tamarris Bohannon died on August 30, 2020
(photo courtesy of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department)

Governor Mike Parson has issued the order, to honor fallen officer Tamarris Bohannon. Governor Parson notes Officer Bohannon was ambushed by a gunman as he responded to a shots fired call in south St. Louis. The officer died on Sunday.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner has charged the suspect in that case, Thomas Kinworthy, with first degree murder and numerous other felonies.

“At only 29 years of age, Officer Tamarris Bohannon had already established himself as a model public servant and law enforcement officer,” Governor Parson says, in a written statement. “In just four years with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, he was honored twice with the Department’s Award of Excellence and twice as officer of the month. Officer Bohannon’s courage, commitment to excellence in policing and devotion to his young family and the St. Louis community are his lasting legacy. We will never forget all of the good Officer Bohannon accomplished in his brief time with us.”

The governor’s proclamation notes that one of the Department’s Award of Excellence was for taking a bank robbery suspect into custody in December 2018.

Click here to read the governor’s proclamation.

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Missouri Senate passes five special session bills to fight crime

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The Missouri Senate passed five special session bills about crime in the wee hours of Thursday morning. Members spent more than 16 hours on the legislation with the most time being consumed by House Bill 2. It deals with the admissibility of certain witness statements. The slowdown came when Sen. Bob Onder, R- Lake St. Louis, worked to tack on a contentious component that would let the Missouri Attorney General get involved in some St. Louis murder cases.

Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis

After several hours of debate, the measure was tabled. It re-emerged late Wednesday night when Onder gained enough support to call for a procedural motion known as the previous question. The controversial tactic forces a vote on the bill. The Senate voted 22-8 in favor of the proposal.

The effort is expected to face strong resistance in the House. The lower chamber did not take up the measure last week.

During floor debate, Onder said Gardner’s office is severely understaffed and her conviction rate is low. Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, led the charge against the effort to intervene in Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s cases.

“Sometimes the evidence is just not there,” said Nasheed.

“But then when she prosecutes, she loses. How do you explain that, senator,” asked Onder.

Nasheed said Onder’s effort is politically motivated. Some Republicans have blasted Gardner for her handling of the criminal case involving former Gov. Eric Greitens and another one about Mark and Patricia McCloskey. The affluent St. Louis couple were charged with a felony over the summer for pointing guns on their property at protesters walking along their private street.

State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed speaks at the Missouri Capitol on January 23, 2018 (file photo courtesy of Missouri Senate photographer Harrison Sweazea]

“She’s not doing her job. She’s too busy prosecuting the McCloskeys and the former governor while children are dying,” said Onder.

Nasheed told Onder the violent crime problem is not Gardner’s fault.

“This is bigger than her not prosecuting,” she said. “You know what this is about. This is about an African American woman.”

Onder fired back and said skin color has nothing to do with his beef with Gardner.

“It’s appalling to me that the sky falls and it’s Kim Gardner’s fault. You can call him the spin doctor if you’d like. He’s spinning the truth,” she said.

Nasheed told Sen. Andrew Koenig, R- Manchester, the state should not be getting involved in local cases.

“If I decide that I want to put a strip club all throughout your district – in the conservative district – or I want to put an abortion clinic in your district, do you know what you’re going to say to me, ‘I didn’t ask you to do that. Get out of here,’” said Nasheed.

“Yeah, well I’m definitely opposed to abortion,” said Koenig.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner

Nasheed questioned why Missourians are required to complete 40 hours to drive but no training is required to own a gun. She went on to blame Republican lawmakers relaxing gun laws for increased access to firearms in the inner cities.

Nasheed said lawmakers must fix the lack of funding for quality education in St. Louis and lack of job opportunities for vulnerable and poor people.

“We have to deal with the root cause and you cannot keep looking at an ugly tree in your backyard and hitting it from the top and thinking that it’s never going to grow again,” said Nasheed. “You have to pull it from its roots so it never grows again. And the root cause of our problems in the city of St. Louis is not Kim Gardner.”

The legislation passed:

*HB 2 would allow an otherwise inadmissible witness statement if a “preponderance” of evidence shows the defendant engaged in wrongdoing to cause the unavailability of the witness. It also lets the Missouri Attorney General intervene in some St. Louis murder cases.

*HB 66 would create a fund to protect witnesses, potential witnesses and their immediate family members during criminal proceedings or investigations.

*HB 46 would lift a requirement for St. Louis first responders to live within the city.

*HB 11 would criminalize adults who knowingly encourage, aid, or cause a child under 17 years old to commit a crime with a weapon.

*HB 16 would toughen the penalty for selling or giving a firearm to someone under 18 years old to avoid or interfere with an arrest, detention, or investigation of a crime.

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UPDATE: Missouri House gives final approval of five crime bills; juvenile certification bill is dead

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The Missouri House voted Tuesday in Jefferson City to give final approval to five bills that are key components of Governor Mike Parson’s (R) special session call on violent crime. The five bills received initial House approval on Monday.

Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, gavels the House into session on August 24, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Meantime, House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, confirms that juvenile certification legislation that has drawn criticism from state lawmakers in both parties will not be taken up by the House, and is dead.

“There’s no consensus about moving a juvenile certification bill, so at this point we’re going to let the law remain where it is,” Speaker Haahr told Missourinet late Monday morning, during an interview in his Capitol office in Jefferson City.

Earlier this month, the Missouri Senate approved legislation that would allow Missouri courts to certify juveniles 14-18 as adults for violent weapons offenses. Governor Parson called for the provision, saying it’s aimed at violent crime like murder. But State Rep. Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, and other critics say it would lock up children and put them in prison with violent offenders and murderers.

The Missouri House Special Committee on Criminal Justice amended the bill last week, changing the ages to 16-18.

“You know I always had concerns with it. Senate Bill One came over and there was some concerns about a variety of parts. We thought it was better for the House to break them down and analyze them separately,” says Haahr.

The five bills given final approval by the House today include witness protection legislation and legislation eliminating the residency requirements for St. Louis police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel.

The bipartisan witness protection bill was approved today by a 147-3 vote. The legislation from State Rep. Jonathan Patterson, R-Lee’s Summit, will create a pretrial witness protection services fund, to be operated by the state Department of Public Safety (DPS) to law enforcement agencies. The money would be used to provide security to witnesses, potential witnesses and their immediate families in criminal proceedings or investigations.

We learned Monday that a second special session will be called to fund the program. House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, told colleagues on the House floor that if lawmakers approve the Patterson bill, Governor Parson will call the second special session to fund the program.

State Rep. Ron Hicks, R-Dardenne Prairie, sponsored the legislation that eliminates the residency requirements for St. Louis police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel. It has a three-year sunset clause. Today’s final House vote was 117-35.

State Rep. Barry Hovis, R-Cape Girardeau, sponsors the legislation that increases penalties for witness and victim tampering. The vote was 133-11.

The other two crime bills are sponsored by State Rep. Nick Schroer, R-O’Fallon. The Schroer bills passed 117-33 and 103-45.

Neither the Senate nor House has held a hearing yet on the governor’s amended special session call involving St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner (D). Speaker Haahr says he’s been in touch with his Senate colleagues.

“The (special session) call was sort of expanded in the middle of the special session. We’ve been in constant dialogue with the Senate. Neither side seems to be prepared at this point to move forward yet on that issue. So I think we are going to try to put these other ones (crime bills) to bed before we figure out what to do with that,” Haahr says.

The governor wants to allow the Missouri Attorney General’s office to take on some murder cases that haven’t been prosecuted yet by Gardner’s office. Circuit Attorney Gardner and the bipartisan Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys oppose that plan.

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McCloskeys during RNC: “Your family will not be safe in Radical Democrats’ America”

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A St. Louis couple who pulled their guns on protesters walking along their private street in June were featured last night during the Republican National Convention. Mark and Patricia McCloskey, both personal injury lawyers, called the protesters “an out-of-control mob causing chaos in the streets.” Patricia McCloskey says “your family will not be safe in the Radical Democrats’ America.

Mark and Patricia McCloskey speak during 2020 Republican National Convention

“They are not satisfied with spreading the chaos and violence into our communities, they want to abolish the suburbs all-together by ending single-family zoning,” says Patricia McCloskey. “This forced rezoning would bring crime, lawlessness and low-quality apartments into thriving suburban neighborhoods. President Trump smartly ended this government overreach, but Joe Biden wants to bring it back. These are the policies that are coming to a neighborhood near you.”

Former U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary and Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro calls McCloskey’s characterization of the regulation “a shameful, deceitful and calculated ploy to drum up racial resentment and white fear.”

The McCloskeys suggested they are the victims for getting charged with felonies after using guns to defend their property. In July, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s Office charged the couple with one felony count each of unlawful use of a weapon — exhibiting.

“It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening manner at those participating in nonviolent protest, and while we are fortunate this situation did not escalate into deadly force, this type of conduct is unacceptable in St. Louis,” Gardner said.

Gov. Mike Parson, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley have all come to the defense of the McCloskeys. Parson says President Donald Trump and U.S. Attorney General William Barr are reviewing the event. The governor suggested Gardner should be removed from office.

Mark McCloskey called out one of the protesters, Democratic Congressional candidate Cori Bush.

“The Marxist liberal activist leading the mob to our neighborhood stood outside of our home with a bullhorn screaming, “You can’t stop the revolution,” says McCloskey. “Just weeks later, that same Marxist activist won the Democrat nomination to hold a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. In the city of St. Louis, that’s the same as winning the General Election. That Marxist revolutionary is going to be the next Congresswoman from the first district of Missouri. These radicals are not content with marching in the streets. They want to walk the halls of Congress. They want to take over.”

On Twitter, Bush did not seem bothered.

Bush is poised to be the first African-American Missouri woman to serve in the U.S. House.

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Missouri Representative on special session: “Tough on crime approach does not actually reduce crime”

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The Missouri House is in session today and is expected to take a preliminary vote on six crime bills. Gov. Mike Parson cites the state’s rising crime rate for calling the current special session.

Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove

Kansas City Democrat Ashley Bland Manlove, the Vice Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, tells Missourinet she has met with the governor about a handful of times over the past year to discuss ways to reduce crime.

“When we asked him to hold a special session last year, he said a special session isn’t enough time to address a heavy issue like violence. And then literally the next year, which unfortunately happens to be an election year, he holds a session on violence. Interesting,” she says.

She says holistic approaches like additional counseling services, surveillance cameras, education funding and social services would help to root out violence – not the bills up for debate today.

“We learned from the 80s that tough on crime does not actually reduce crime,” she says. “You actually have to treat the person and invest in the human capital.”

One of the most contentious bills being considered today would let judges decide whether 16 to 18-year-olds should be prosecuted as adults and possibly go to prison for certain weapons crimes. Another controversial measure would remove a requirement for St. Louis police officers to live within the city. One measure Bland Manlove supports would create a witness protection fund to keep witnesses and their families safe before trial.

A bill absent from today’s lineup is one that would let the Missouri Attorney General get involved in some St. Louis murder cases. Parson expanded his special session call to urge lawmakers to pass the measure.

The Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, with many being Republican members, is strongly opposed to the proposal. The group of 115 prosecutors says it has consistently fought for decades against proposals that would give the state attorney general jurisdiction in local cases.

Other legislators also oppose the plan and accuse the governor of playing political games for going after St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner. The governor has publicly condemned Gardner for charging an affluent St. Louis couple with felonies after they pulled out their guns on protesters walking along their private street.

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