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Video from 04/02/25
Gov. Mike Kehoe speaks Wednesday before signing a bill that puts the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department under control of a state board.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department will again be governed by a state board instead of local officials under a bill signed Wednesday by Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe.
The change, reversing a statewide vote from 2012 that put the board under local control, is needed, supporters say, because of high crime rates in the state’s second largest city. Asked what would happen if crime does not decrease, Kehoe said no bill, on its own, will reduce crime.
“You can’t legislate lower crime, but what you can do is give law enforcement the tools it takes,” he said.
The bill restores the governing system that controlled the department from 1861 until the 2012 vote. With Kehoe’s signature, St. Louis joins Kansas City as the only major metropolitan police force in the country under control of a state board rather than local officials.
The Board of Police Commissioners will have six members — the mayor of St. Louis and five people appointed by the governor and subject to state Senate confirmation.
The bill directs Kehoe to name an interim director of the department within 30 days and the five commissioners within 90 days.
The bill passed on party-line votes in the House and Senate, with Democrats opposing the move with arguments that it was racist because Black Democrats hold the major offices in St. Louis and unneeded because crime is decreasing.
Critics point to statistics showing a drop in violent crime in St. Louis under local leadership. They say Kansas City has fared no better despite being under state control since the 1930s.
“State takeover is not based in reality, and only shows that Gov. Kehoe and the legislature are willing to throw out facts, reason, and the will of the people in order to give the safety of our city away to special interests,” St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones said in a news release.
Crime continues to fall in St. Louis, Jones said, and targeted violence prevention programs have reduced homicides by more than half in 2024 compared to 2023.
“From the very beginning, this bill has been a sham, and the governor’s signature represents nothing but disrespect for every Missouri voter who supported local control,” Jones said.
Senate Democrats filibustered the bill, winning additions of provisions banning the shackling of pregnant prisoners, establishing a fund for exonerated prisoners to receive restitution from the state and limiting what jails and prisons can charge inmates for phone calls.
Republicans also agreed to remove a provision that broadened the definition of rioting, a change Democrats feared would have wide ranging unintended consequences.
The bill also requires Missouri law enforcement agencies to report the immigration status of suspected criminal offenders to the state’s Department of Public Safety. It also expands the definition of a “dangerous felony” — crimes that require offenders to serve 85% of their sentence before parole —- to include the offense of first degree child endangerment and adds having fentanyl in the presence of a minor to the list of actions that endanger a child.
While legislative Republicans overwhelmingly supported reverting to state control of the St. Louis police, a recent poll suggests Missouri voters aren’t as enthusiastic for the move. And they would like it even less if state control was extended to their local law enforcement agency.
Gov. Mike Kehoe signs bill to put St. Louis police under state control
Supporters promise lower crime, safer streets under new regime for police governance, while critics see a Republican power grab and disregard for a choice made by voters
03/27/25
Gov. Mike Kehoe speaks Wednesday before signing a bill that puts the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department under control of a state board.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department will again be governed by a state board instead of local officials under a bill signed Wednesday by Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe.
The change, reversing a statewide vote from 2012 that put the board under local control, is needed, supporters say, because of high crime rates in the state’s second largest city. Asked what would happen if crime does not decrease, Kehoe said no bill, on its own, will reduce crime.
“You can’t legislate lower crime, but what you can do is give law enforcement the tools it takes,” he said.
The bill restores the governing system that controlled the department from 1861 until the 2012 vote. With Kehoe’s signature, St. Louis joins Kansas City as the only major metropolitan police force in the country under control of a state board rather than local officials.
The Board of Police Commissioners will have six members — the mayor of St. Louis and five people appointed by the governor and subject to state Senate confirmation.
The bill directs Kehoe to name an interim director of the department within 30 days and the five commissioners within 90 days.
The bill passed on party-line votes in the House and Senate, with Democrats opposing the move with arguments that it was racist because Black Democrats hold the major offices in St. Louis and unneeded because crime is decreasing.
Critics point to statistics showing a drop in violent crime in St. Louis under local leadership. They say Kansas City has fared no better despite being under state control since the 1930s.
“State takeover is not based in reality, and only shows that Gov. Kehoe and the legislature are willing to throw out facts, reason, and the will of the people in order to give the safety of our city away to special interests,” St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones said in a news release.
Crime continues to fall in St. Louis, Jones said, and targeted violence prevention programs have reduced homicides by more than half in 2024 compared to 2023.
“From the very beginning, this bill has been a sham, and the governor’s signature represents nothing but disrespect for every Missouri voter who supported local control,” Jones said.
Senate Democrats filibustered the bill, winning additions of provisions banning the shackling of pregnant prisoners, establishing a fund for exonerated prisoners to receive restitution from the state and limiting what jails and prisons can charge inmates for phone calls.
Republicans also agreed to remove a provision that broadened the definition of rioting, a change Democrats feared would have wide ranging unintended consequences.
The bill also requires Missouri law enforcement agencies to report the immigration status of suspected criminal offenders to the state’s Department of Public Safety. It also expands the definition of a “dangerous felony” — crimes that require offenders to serve 85% of their sentence before parole —- to include the offense of first degree child endangerment and adds having fentanyl in the presence of a minor to the list of actions that endanger a child.
While legislative Republicans overwhelmingly supported reverting to state control of the St. Louis police, a recent poll suggests Missouri voters aren’t as enthusiastic for the move. And they would like it even less if state control was extended to their local law enforcement agency.
