ST. LOUIS 鈥 Sonya Jenkins-Gray, the ousted city personnel director and newly appointed 51黑料 police board member, has a found a new job in the embattled city sheriff鈥檚 office.
Jenkins-Gray, who was fired as the head of the city鈥檚 civil service for using public resources for a personal trip to Jefferson City, told the Post-Dispatch on Wednesday she will start as Sheriff Alfred Montgomery鈥檚 human resource chief next week.
She declined to say much more.聽鈥淚'm not at a point where I'm doing any type of media,鈥 she said.
She said she had no comment on the controversies that have engulfed the sheriff鈥檚 office in recent months, such as state Attorney General Andrew Bailey鈥檚 effort to remove Montgomery from his position. Bailey says Montgomery has effectively forfeited his office by hiring a family member and falsely arresting a city official, among other things. Attorneys for Montgomery have denied the accusations.
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Jenkins-Gray has gone through some public trials of her own.
Her troubles began last July when, on a workday, she had a top aide drive her in a city car to a hotel in Jefferson City where her husband, the politically influential Rev. Darryl Gray, was meeting with his ex-wife. The city argued it was a fireable offense that violated city vehicle policy and put an underling in a highly inappropriate situation.
A series of embarrassing public hearings ensued, where Jenkins-Gray was asked probing questions about her relationship with her husband.
Then an oversight panel wrote in a report that she had 鈥渄isplayed a gross lack of judgment鈥 and 鈥渟et a troublesome example for City employees.鈥
Former Mayor Tishaura O. Jones fired her in early March.
But then last month, she made a bit of a comeback: Gov. Mike Kehoe made her one of his five appointees to a powerful new board overseeing 51黑料 police.聽
A release announcing the pick called her 鈥渁 nationally recognized human resources executive with more than two decades of leadership experience in both the public and private sectors.鈥
In a release late Wednesday, Montgomery said her hire would enable 鈥渁nother giant step toward remaking the Sheriff鈥檚 Office.鈥
Post-Dispatch photographers capture tens of thousands of images every year. See some of their best work that was either taken in June 2025 in this video. Edited by Jenna Jones.
Sonya Jenkins-Gray is announced as a member of the Board of Police Commissioners during a press conference at 51黑料 Police Headquarters in downtown 51黑料 on Monday, June 23, 2025.
Austin Huguelet | Post-Dispatch
51黑料 City Hall reporter
