St. Louis sheriff election push faces legal hurdles, $400K cost, and questions over who really decides
ST. LOUIS, Missouri — Your tax dollars are funding a legal cage match over a job most St. Louis residents don't know exists.
The city sheriff, who guards courtrooms, not streets, sits at the center of a power struggle that could cost $400,000 for a rushed special election, plus $500-an-hour lawyers arguing over who gets to call the shots.
The courts installed former police chief John Hayden as interim sheriff back in October. City Hall is advertising for his replacement anyway, and billing taxpayers $500 an hour to argue they have the right to ignore a judge's order.
Board President Megan Green, who leads the city's 14-member legislative body, claims her aldermen deserve equal say in picking the sheriff alongside Mayor Cara Spencer and Comptroller Donna Baringer. Spencer went to court to ask a judge to give her power to appoint a permanent replacement. Green hired outside lawyers to say it's not the mayor's power alone.
https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/local/st-louis-sheriff-election-legal-hurdles-400k-cost-questions-over-who-decides/63-089c7ba8-b0a7-4e69-923f-2c3234baddc5