05/18/2023 - Jefferson City, MO
State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick announced today that his
office will continue and complete an audit of the St. Louis Circuit Attorney's
Office that originally began in June of 2021. Despite Gardner's abrupt
resignation and her numerous attempts to ignore and delay the release of
requested records, Auditor Fitzpatrick said the State Auditor's Office will
work to obtain the remaining documents necessary to finish the audit.
"Kim Gardner has
repeatedly stood in the way of our efforts to complete the audit that was
requested by the Board of Aldermen and the people of St. Louis. Before she
resigned from office we were prepared to petition the court to enforce a
subpoena that was first issued over two and a half months ago to obtain the
documents we need to complete our work. She knew we were prepared to enforce
the subpoena in court on May 16 and chose to resign on that exact day,"
said Auditor Fitzpatrick. "Even with her decision to step away earlier
than expected, we have a duty to the people of St. Louis to complete our assessment
of the performance of the Circuit Attorney's Office. We're hopeful the new
Circuit Attorney will work in good faith with us to ensure we can finish the
audit without further delay. In the event the new Circuit Attorney does not
have access to the records we need, we're prepared to take any and all steps
necessary, including additional subpoenas and petitions in court, to obtain the
needed documents from Kim Gardner directly."
He added, "One
way or another, Kim Gardner will have to answer for her time as Circuit
Attorney. Her sudden resignation doesn't negate the duty my office has to make
sure the St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office is transparent and
accountable."
The audit of the
St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office is part of an ongoing audit of the City of
St. Louis that was requested by the Board of Aldermen in January 2018. The
State Auditor's Office under Nicole Galloway first reached out to the Circuit
Attorney's Office in June of 2021 in an effort to obtain and review pertinent
records. In the two years since that initial contact, the Circuit Attorney's
Office has repeatedly ignored or delayed responding to requests from the State
Auditor's Office under Galloway and now Fitzpatrick.
Auditor
Fitzpatrick served a subpoena on Kim Gardner and the St. Louis Circuit
Attorney's office on March 2, 2023 in order to obtain documents necessary to
complete the audit. The subpoena requested items such as bank and credit card
statements and policy guidelines. The subpoena resulted in the Circuit
Attorney's Office producing some of the requested documents, while ignoring or
attempting to delay the release of others. On May 15, Auditor Fitzpatrick
served subpoenas on the financial institutions that hold the various bank
accounts of the Circuit Attorney's Office.
Since the audit
of the City of St. Louis began in 2018, the State Auditor's Office has released
more than 20 audit reports relating to the request made by the Board of
Aldermen. Of the two remaining audits to complete the process, only the audit
of the Circuit Attorney's Office has experienced significant delays due to
failure to respond to audit requests. The State Auditor's Office anticipates
finishing the audit this year.
The last state
audit of the city was completed in 2010, and included 26 audit reports.
