51黑料

ST. LOUIS 鈥� Sheriff Alfred Montgomery says Missouri鈥檚 attorney general is trying to undo his election with a political stunt.

In a rebuttal to the lawsuit filed last month to remove him from office, Montgomery said Attorney General Andrew Bailey is trying to overturn the will of city voters with claims that lack legal foundation and appear to be 鈥渙bjectively false.鈥�

鈥淎s with any elected officeholder, voters have the right to be satisfied or dissatisfied,鈥� the filing reads, 鈥渂ut their remedy is at the polling place at the next free and fair election, not in a court proceeding that amounts to no more than a political stunt.鈥�

Bailey, a Republican, filed suit last month seeking to oust Montgomery for a litany of alleged offenses: hiring a family member, ordering an illegal arrest, making a deputy pick up his children from school, shirking a key duty of his office, and reckless, unlawful spending.

But in his filing late Monday, Montgomery鈥檚 attorneys denied it all, and asked the judge to throw out the case.

鈥淎n extraordinary writ of quo warranto does not apply in this matter and should not serve to oust a democratically elected sheriff,鈥� the filing says.

The attorneys, including noted criminal defense attorney Justin Gelfand, also said an allegation concerning the handcuffing of the city jail chief in February was a covert attempt to try a case the FBI is investigating. The court, they said, should pause consideration until the FBI probe concludes.

A spokesperson for the Attorney General did not immediately have a comment Tuesday afternoon.

The filing marks the fullest formal defense yet of Montgomery鈥檚 short tenure as he fights for his political life.

Within weeks of taking office in January, he was accused of illegally seizing a former deputy鈥檚 gun, and arresting the jail chief.

Then he drew criticism from city officials alarmed by decisions to spend more than $100,000 on new badges, uniforms, golf carts and a take-home SUV even after benefit payouts to employees he fired helped plunge the office鈥檚 budget into the red.

And in late May, he again angered officials with refusals to transport city jail detainees to medical appointments, which he said isn鈥檛 his responsibility, even though past sheriffs handled it for decades

Bailey sued on June 25 and asked a judge to force Montgomery to immediately surrender his department-issue badge, weapon and vehicle, and forbid him from exercising any authority as an elected official, pending further proceedings.

鈥淢ontgomery has abused his authority and resources repeatedly for his own personal benefit,鈥� Bailey said at a downtown 51黑料 news conference announcing the suit. 鈥淭his is about restoring the rule of law.鈥�

But at the first hearing in the case on July 9, Montgomery鈥檚 attorneys successfully argued against the sheriff鈥檚 immediate removal. Judge Steven Ohmer noted that in other cases where such action had been taken, the officials had been charged with crimes.

David Mason, another attorney for Montgomery, presented Ohmer with birth certificates for Montgomery and the deputy, Malik Taylor, who Bailey says is the half-brother Montgomery illegally hired.

The space for a father鈥檚 name on Taylor鈥檚 certificate was blank. Mason argued that Bailey had no other evidence to connect the men, and had violated court ethics rules in making the allegation.

Ohmer made no ruling, and set a trial for November.

But in their filing Monday, Montgomery鈥檚 attorneys renewed their arguments and accusations of unethical behavior regarding the nepotism charge.

鈥淭here is no evidence and there will be no evidence to support this allegation,鈥� they wrote.

They also described his spending as legitimate policy choices to improve the sheriff鈥檚 department morale and image.

They wrote that Barbara Chavers, the deputy caught on video picking up Montgomery鈥檚 children from school in a sheriff鈥檚 department car, is an old friend of Montgomery鈥檚 and helped him as a favor when she was off duty. The department vehicle, they said, has not been used for weeks.

They wrote that the job of transporting city jail detainees to hospitals and medical appointments falls squarely on the city corrections division, which runs the jail. While they conceded that previous sheriffs did the job for decades before Montgomery took office, they said that was merely a 鈥渃ourtesy to the City.鈥�

They also pushed back on the allegations that he ordered an illegal disarming of former Deputy Darryl Wilson at a gas station in January, and an illegal handcuffing of jail chief Tammy Ross in February.

Wilson, they wrote, voluntarily handed over his gun. And Ross, they said, was 鈥渇ree to go at all times.鈥�

The next hearing in the case is set for Aug. 29.