Auditors can't locate former St. Louis circuit attorney to complete state audit

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A state examination of the office that handles criminal prosecutions in St. Louis is being delayed because auditors can’t find former Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, Missouri Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick said Monday.

Fitzpatrick said in a news release that auditors have tried for several months to contact Gardner, including trying to serve her with a subpoena. Her whereabouts remain unknown, he said.

“This is a pattern of behavior with Kim Gardner, who hasn’t shown a willingness to be transparent or accountable,” Fitzpatrick, a Republican, said in a news release. “Without question, she knows our audit is ongoing and that we want to speak with her about her time in office, but she has made no effort to comply with our requests or respond to our inquiries.”

Gardner, a Democrat first elected in 2016 to become the city’s first Black circuit attorney, resigned in May 2023. She was part of a movement of progressive prosecutors who sought diversion to mental health treatment or drug abuse treatment for low-level crimes, pledged to hold police more accountable, and sought to free inmates who were wrongfully convicted.