Montee Says, “This Was an Easy Day. The Bulk of Things Are Operating Well.”

ST. LOUIS, MO (December 8, 2009) — The Missouri State Auditor’s Office shared the outcome of its 2009 comprehensive state audit of the Circuit Attorney’s Office (CAO), among other city and county offices within the City of St. Louis. “There are no major problems at all,” says Montee. “The bulk of things are operating well.”

Jennifer M. Joyce, Circuit Attorney for the City of St. Louis is satisfied with recommendations made by Susan Montee, JD, CPA and her team of auditors. “We are very serious about operating an efficient, transparent and highly productive office,” says Joyce. “We have begun implementing several recommendations from the audit and will continue to review our processes and procedures to ensure that we manage taxpayer resources responsibly and with great respect.” Joyce also believes the audit team was very professional, courteous and thorough.

The primary item in the audit that concerns Joyce is the lack of resources available to address the evidence management systems utilized by The St. Louis Police Department, Circuit Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Office. For more than a year, the Circuit Attorney’s Office has been working with the St. Louis Police Department to properly dispose of old evidence. Joyce says that the criminal justice system in St. Louis could benefit greatly from an enhanced electronic system for management and disposal of evidence among the three agencies that utilize and store this evidence.

Currently, there is no money allocated in the Circuit Attorney's budget for this need, and with the pending fiscal challenges, there is not expected to be any future financial support.

The proper management of evidence is paramount to the job of prosecutors and to the pursuit of justice for all people. The CAO has clear inventory management and procedures to check out evidence for open cases from the Police Department and Sheriff Department. Montee says that there are no issues with evidence that is needed for trial. She stated that she was most interested in promoting policies that would allow for an overall list of evidence and more frequent inventories of stored evidence.

“All evidence is currently managed with great care and in accordance with the law, however, we will research and consider the recommendations for improving inventory controls suggested by the audit team,” explains Joyce. “Despite the complexity of the current evidence management system, citizens should rest assured that all evidence in Circuit Attorney custody, in open and closed cases is well managed and secure.”

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