While a judge weighs whether to remove St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery, city leaders are suing Missouri over who has the authority to appoint a new sheriff.
“The City asserts that this responsibility rests with its chief executive officer, the mayor,” wrote city counselor Michael Garvin in the lawsuit filed Friday. “But when a vacancy occurred in the office of sheriff more than 40 years ago, it was the City’s Board of Aldermen that chose a replacement sheriff.”
Garvin writes that in order to resolve all uncertainty around the issue, a judge needs to decide who has the expressed authority. The case was filed in Cole County, where the majority of challenges to state law are submitted.
St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer told St. Louis Public Radio last week that the situation is murky.
“It’s a complicated web of regulations,” she said “While there are a lot of opinions, the only thing that is clear is that it’s not actually clear who has appointing authority in case of a vacancy in the St. Louis sheriff's office.”
The spat between top officials has become a notable point in the sheriff’s embroglio.
Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said she believes Gov. Mike Kehoe will get to name Montgomery’s replacement, adding that he and Spencer are on the same page about a candidate. The governor was ultimately the one to name the replacement after St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner — the holder of another county office — resigned in 2023.
Board of Aldermen President Megan Green and the majority of the board disagree.
She sent a letter to Spencer months ago saying she would not support any potential selection process that doesn’t include the board. Green said it is the board’s understanding that selecting a new sheriff could be up to its members, the mayor and the comptroller.
“The integrity of this appointment — and the integrity of the appointment process itself — are essential to reestablishing trust in an embattled office,” Green wrote to the mayor. “I share the same commitment you’ve expressed to keeping this decision in the hands of local elected officials, which is why it’s imperative we’re aligned on this matter.”
The board doubled down on their assertion on Friday, passing a resolution that contends case law and past precedent gives them the authority to be the body that makes that appointment or decision to call a special election.
When former Sheriff Benjamin L. Goins — the first Black elected sheriff in the city — was ordered to step down by the Missouri Supreme Court in 1978 after landing federal charges for corruption and income tax evasion, then-city counselor Jack L. Koehr determined Missouri law requires a special election for the seat within 30 days after the vacancy.
The Friday resolution, passed almost unanimously except for 12th Ward Alderwoman Sharon Tyus, called on the city to include the board and its president on any declaratory actions on this matter.
“Although the City’s Board of Aldermen previously made appointments to fill prior vacancies in the office of sheriff in the 1970s, the Supreme Court’s subsequent decision […] clarifies that the proper approach is to look to the City Charter for authority regarding appointments in vacant seats of elected officials,” the suit alleges. “The Charter assigns the responsibility and duty to make such appointments to the mayor.”
A spokesperson for Green’s office said the Board of Aldermen is exploring options on finding a way for them and Kehoe to be included as interested parties in the lawsuit — whether through a revision of the lawsuit by the city counselor or by seeking outside counsel.
“Checks and balances exist for a reason, and it's a responsibility that the Board of Aldermen takes seriously,” said Green. “Seeking to unilaterally appoint the interim sheriff is an overreach by the Mayor’s Office, and I’m proud the Board is unified in exercising its authority to act as a check on our executive branch.”
