St. Louis Mayor

“We don't need a sheriff in the city of St. Louis, but we especially don't need this sheriff,” Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said Thursday.

After less than a year, Alfred Montgomery faces removal efforts, controversies and multiple lawsuits. But he came in with big goals for the St. Louis sheriff’s office.

In a Tuesday order, Circuit Judge Joan L. Moriarty cited a lack of staff at the City Justice Center — and subsequent reductions in detainee services — as reasons to require Sheriff Alfred Montgomery's office to immediately provide transportation to external medical providers.

Mayor Cara Spencer said she is shocked that Montgomery would float taking over the city’s jail while he doesn’t fulfill the debated duties of his office.

Following an hourslong hearing, Sheriff Alfred Montgomery said his office should take over the City Justice Center in order to provide detainees with improved medical care.

More than four months later, north St. Louis streets, alleyways and sidewalks are starting to look clearer as city contractors remove debris from the May 16 tornado. But neighbors say the job isn’t as far along as they’d like, and in some cases the work is falling short.

Sheriff Alfred Montgomery's lawyers warned of "irreparable harm" to the safety and security of the 22nd Judicial Circuit Courts if the office is forced to medically transport jail detainees in a request for a temporary restraining order filed Monday.

The bill now goes to Mayor Cara Spencer's desk for final approval. It comes after Sheriff Alfred Montgomery sparred with the board's budget committee last June.

Sarah Russell had worked for the City Emergency Management Agency since 2010, and became a deputy commissioner in 2012. They were named CEMA commissioner in 2021.

Mayor Cara Spencer’s administration has been telegraphing such a move since May.