No, this is not a post about a Star Wars movie. It’s about the only chance we have to get a leader with competence in the Circuit Attorney’s Office. I had hoped that ex-judge Jimmie Edwards would run against Kim Gardner, but that never came to fruition.
As the filing date (March 31) for the City primary has come and gone, the only competent person who has filed for the job of Circuit Attorney is Mary Pat Carl.
I know that doesn’t sound like a ringing endorsement from me, but let me be clear: Mary Pat is a solid, competent prosecutor. Her main liabilities are that she was one of Jennifer Joyce’s insiders and Jennifer’s chosen successor (whom she endorsed in the last election). I’m sure Kim Gardner will use that, along with her patented they’re-out-to-get-me-because-I’m-a-black-female-reformer shtick, to try to frame the upcoming campaign as a choice between onwards-with-the-enlightened-reforms with Kim vs. go-back-to-racist-mass-incarcerations with Mary Pat. She will try to make it (literally) a black or white issue.
In speaking with Mary Pat, I can say that she does realize that times are changing and does embrace many of the reforms needed in our justice system. But I think at this point — at this point — reforms need to take a backseat.
The critical issue for this election is competence.
The sad truth is that the CAO is a shell of what it used to be. It’s a ship whose captain and officers are blatantly incompetent, and that is kept afloat only through the heroic efforts of its inexperienced crew. It’s a crime what Kim Gardner has done to the CAO.
But there is hope.
An election is coming, and a new captain at the helm can save the ship. So, I am asking people to send Mary Pat contributions to help save the CAO. That’s what this election really comes down to and what’s at stake: saving the Circuit Attorney’s Office.
Send your contribution to:
Friends of Mary Pat Carl, P.O. Box 21822 , St. Louis, MO 63109.
I’ve sent mine. Send yours now.