Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, the St. Louis prosecutor who charged Mark and Patricia McCloskey for brandishing guns at protesters last summer, could have her law license revoked following a professional misconduct investigation and impending hearing.
The Missouri Chief Disciplinary Counsel found probable cause that Gardner is “guilty of professional misconduct” after she allegedly hid evidence and fabricated facts while she was prosecuting then-Gov. Eric Greitens, according to court documents reported on Wednesday.
The case is now set to go before a disciplinary hearing panel, according to a state website.
In January 2018, the top attorney contracted William Don Tisaby, a private investigator who was later charged with perjury and evidence tampering, to help conduct an inquiry into Greitens, who at the time was accused of inappropriate extramarital contact with an anonymous individual identified as “K.S.”
Greitens was eventually indicted on one count of invasion of privacy, a felony, for allegedly taking and transmitting a photograph of someone who was partially nude. The charge was dropped in May 2018, and that same month Greitens resigned as part of a deal to drop felony computer-tampering charges related to a veterans’ charity donor list.
Authorities now say Gardner concealed investigation details from her team, failed to disclose facts to Greitens’s legal team, and misrepresented evidence to a court of law.
MCCLOSKEYS WANT CRIMINAL CASE ‘REVISITED’ BY GRAND JURY AFTER ‘BIAS’ REVEALED IN PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE
Gardner has voraciously denied the allegations as she faces the prospect of suspension or losing her law license. The top prosecutor said the investigation is “another attempt” by her political foes to diminish her character, she claimed in a 41-page retort.
“The Information is another attempt by Ms. Gardner’s political enemies — largely from outside St. Louis — to remove Ms. Gardner and thwart the systemic reforms she champions,” adding that her investigation of Greitens was “not wrongfully motivated” and that she did not “hide” any material from the relevant parties.
Gardner echoed these words in a Tuesday statement.
“As the Circuit Attorney has repeatedly proven time after time, she has acted in full accordance with the law during the investigation into former Governor Greitens,” the statement from her office read. “Despite several investigations attempting to uncover illegal wrongdoing by her office in this case, none has ever been found. We are confident that a full review of the facts will show that the Circuit Attorney has not violated the ethical standards of the State of Missouri.”
Gardner made headlines in July when she charged the McCloskeys with unlawful use of a weapon and evidence tampering after unruly demonstrators flooded their luxury community following the death of George Floyd. Mark McCloskey, donning a pink polo, walked around his lawn with an AR-15, while his wife, Patricia, carried a silver handgun, according to the July footage. The pair pleaded not guilty to the charges in October.
The pair claimed the crowd broke a fence surrounding their home and threatened them.
In December, Gardner was removed from the case after it was determined she raised the appearance of initiating a “criminal prosecution for political purposes,” following reports that she used the charges to circulate fundraising emails for her reelection bid, Circuit Judge Thomas Clark said at the time. In late January 2021, Gardner lost her second appeal to lead the prosecution effort against the duo.
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Last month, the McCloskeys pushed for their criminal case to be “revisited” by a grand jury after they claimed Gardner was harboring “bias” against them.
“Due to the bias of Kim Gardner’s office, we believe the grand jury process was tainted and should be reviewed and revisited,” Joel Schwartz, the attorney for the pair, said at the time.
Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to say Gov. Eric Greitens resigned in May 2018 as part of a deal to drop felony computer-tampering charges, not as part of a plea deal as was reported earlier. The Washington Examiner regrets the error.
