Alfred Montgomery

A facility built for progress reflects "decades of neglect" and the city’s deepest struggles, from mental illness to systemic dysfunction.

Reports of a sexual assault in the jail led to an incident in February during which St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery ordered the jail’s acting commissioner, Tammy Ross, to be handcuffed.

The lawsuit is the latest in a string of legal actions and investigations in the office.

Tony Kirchner says St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery defamed him Saturday in a statement in which Montgomery said Kirchner was emotionally unstable and potentially dangerous.

St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery was caught on tape making Tony Kirchner roll dice for a chance to keep his job. After he was sacked anyway, the former sheriff’s deputy alleged that the firing was illegal and that it’s not the only improper termination.

The incident stems from a complaint lodged last week that alleges a detained person at the city jail was assaulted by a sheriff’s deputy.

Betts — who has become known for saying just about anything — will depart at the end of the year after losing the Democratic primary to former deputy Alfred Montgomery.

Sheriff-elect Alfred Montgomery said he plans on replacing more than a dozen senior staffers with seasoned law enforcement veterans from the region on Jan. 1.

Their conflict started when Betts fired Alfred Montgomery, then a sheriff’s deputy, after he announced his first (and unsuccessful) run for the position in 2019.

St. Louis Sheriff Vernon Betts had officers remove a St. Louis Public Radio photojournalist attempting to photograph a land tax sale auction held in front of the Civil Courts Building earlier this week.