ACLU of Missouri Launches 'Smart Justice' Voter Education Effort

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, MO — The Missouri chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has launched a new voter education effort focused on the August primary election for St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney.

That office is currently held by Democrat Robert McCulloch, who came to national attention in 2014 when he declined to charge former Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson with murder after he fatally shot Michael Brown, a black teenager. McCulloch drew criticism for his handling of the case, including from the NAACP and prominent black lawmakers.

U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay accused McCulloch of trying to influence the jury pool by releasing a video of an alleged robbery committed by Brown shortly before his death. "We don't have any confidence in the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney's office," Clay said at the time.

McCulloch has also been criticized for his close ties to police. Despite several high profile and controversial cases, McCulloch has never prosecuted a police shooting. Of five such cases he has presented to a grand jury over his more than 25-year career, none have returned indictments.

"I couldn't become a policeman, so being county prosecutor is the next best thing," McCulloch once told the Post-Dispatch.

The ACLU says it doesn't endorse or oppose candidates, and that its campaign is part of a lager effort to transform the criminal justice system through the electoral process.

"We felt compelled to get involved because there is much at stake for civil liberties, civil rights, in St. Louis and across Missouri,” said Jeffrey Mittman, ACLU of Missouri executive director. “Our goal is to ensure that voters know they can begin to hold police accountable, end racial disparities in our criminal justice system and ensure that justice means justice no matter if you are rich or poor. We can elect a prosecuting attorney who is committed to those same beliefs.”

Missouri has one of the highest incarceration rates in the nation, and its female prison population has grown by more than 33 percent since 2010 — the fastest of any state.

A recent report from the Missouri attorney general also found that traffic stops disproportionately target African Americans in the state. Black drivers in Missouri were 85 percent more likely to be stopped by police and 51 percent more likely to be searched than white drivers, even though the report also found white drivers were more often found with drugs, weapons or other contraband.

"In St. Louis County and communities across Missouri, smart justice policies start with the prosecuting attorney, the single most powerful individual who shapes what justice looks like," the ACLU said in a news release.

The group is demanding improved government transparency, an end to racial discrimination in prosecutions, a reduction in the number of people behind bars, alternatives to jail, and bail reform.

As part of that effort, the ACLU said it will be canvassing St. Louis County every weekend leading up to the August 7 primary. The group will also co-sponsor at least one candidate forum.

To read candidates' responses to the group's questionnaires, visit www.pickyourpa.org. Both McCulloch and his Democratic primary challenger, Wesley Bell, have returned their answers. The site will be updated in the fall with responses from all prosecuting attorney candidates across the state, the ACLU said.

Photo: St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch in 2015. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)