ST. LOUIS – Tuesday is the deadline for embattled St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner to respond to the court filing by Missouri’s attorney general to oust her from office.  

At this point, there’s no official response from Gardner to the move by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. A judge has weighed in, saying last month that if Gardner does not respond by Tuesday’s deadline, then she could face a judgment by default.

Bailey initially called on Gardner to resign in the wake of the horrible crash last month downtown that resulted in 17-year-old Janae Edmondson of Tennessee, losing her legs. When Gardner refused to step down, Bailey filed a motion called ‘Quo Warranto,’ to try and remove her from office.

Bailey’s motion accuses Gardner of neglecting her job in multiple ways, including failing to prosecute cases, failing to keep in contact with victims, and failing to review and file cases submitted by St. Louis police. Gardner has fired back, saying Bailey’s accusations are politically motivated and that is doing her job correctly.

Gardner’s supporters have also spoken out, saying that she is the victim of racist attacks. The controversy over Gardner intensified after the crash involving Janae Edmondson.

The driver of the car who police said caused the crash, 21-year-old Daniel Riley, was out on bond on a pending robbery case when the crash happened. He had violated his bond conditions multiple times without any consequences.

Some have blamed Gardner for Riley not being back behind bars before the crash, but Gardner explained that she requested that Riley’s bond be revoked and judges did not act.