In February 2023, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey requested that Gardner resign after a serial criminal who had violated house arrest 51 times caused a teenage girl to lose both of her legs.
As Circuit Attorney, Gardner removed or reduced the amount of cash required for bonds for minor, nonviolent offenses.
[10] During Gardner's tenure, the CAO shared a federal grant to work with the Midwest Innocence Project on wrongful convictions.
[12] Kim Gardner's office charged defendants under direct complaint and then used the grand jury process to delay the preliminary hearing.
[13][14] Kim Gardner's office secured a grand jury indictment of sitting Missouri Governor Eric Greitens in February 2018, for felony invasion of privacy.
In May 2018, the judge in the Greitens case ruled that the defense could call Gardner as a witness due to suspected criminal conduct by the prosecution.
[27] Following the press conference, special prosecutor Carmody took the unusual step of putting out a statement clarifying that the grand jury disbanded because its term expired, not because the investigation was complete.
[28] Tisaby's motion to dismiss the indictment against him was denied by St. Louis Circuit Judge Bryan Hettenbach, who also placed a protective order on approximately 4,000 documents at Carmody's request to protect the privacy of some parties involved in the Greitens case and the integrity of "an active criminal investigation" focused on the failed prosecution of Greitens.
Judge Bryan Hettenbach also denied Tisaby's attorneys' motion to dismiss the case and the sanctioning of Carmody for allegedly not providing transcripts.
[31] Tisaby admitted to failing to give Greiten's lawyers documents including his notes during an interview with the women involved in the case.
[32] It was published on May 4, 2021, that the Missouri's State Disciplinary Counsel found probable cause that during the Greitens prosecution, Gardner committed professional misconduct.
[33] Gardner will face a disciplinary panel and any possible punishment will be decided by the Missouri Supreme Court which could range from admonishment to the suspension or revocation of her law license.
[33] An expert on prosecutorial misconduct, Professor Bennett Gershman, described the case as "startling" and an unusual invocation of Brady v. Maryland, on which the record focuses.
[35] Gardner admitted to wrongdoing during the hearing and agreed to a 40-page stipulation that stated how notes and a recording were not given to Greiten's defense team.
[37] Fifty-five prosecutors and law enforcement officials from across the United States signed a statement supporting Gardner's Brady List.
[40] On December 23, 2019 (the day before Christmas Eve), Kim Gardner was pulled over by St. Louis Metropolitan Police officers on Market Street for a traffic violation.
KMOV4 news also published video evidence from a camera across the street revealing that St. Louis police officers had pulled Gardner over when her car was shown driving without headlights, and that the stop lasted for only 6 minutes.
[41] In 2019, Gardner admitted to repeated campaign finance violations dating back to her time as a Missouri state legislator.
[44] Several African American women district attorneys, including Marilyn Mosby and Aramis Ayala, traveled to St. Louis to demonstrate support for Gardner, declaring that she has been targeted by a "fundamentally racist" system which they also contend against.
[46] The judge wrote that: "Her 32-page complaint can best be described as a conglomeration of unrelated claims and conclusory statements supported by very few facts, which do not plead any recognizable cause of action" and continued that "Gardner presents no specific material facts, circumstantial or otherwise, to show that defendants acted with each other for the purpose of depriving her – or anyone else – of a constitutional right to equal protection.
Invoices and receipts obtained by the Post-Dispatch show the city in June approved and paid the Brown & James firm about $153,600 in legal bills to defend the Circuit Attorney's Office against two lawsuits.
[48] In January 2020, Fox News contributor and political commentator John Solomon sued Gardner and several others—including former State Representatives Jay Barnes and Stacey Newman, billionaire political donor George Soros, and individuals connected to the state's low income housing tax credit industry—in the St. Louis Circuit Court, alleging violations of Missouri's open records laws.
[49] Solomon claimed that Gardner's office violated the state's "Sunshine Law" by refusing to make available records involving investigations into former Republican Missouri Governor Eric Greitens.
[52] In June 2020, 36 people were arrested in St. Louis during two nights of the George Floyd protests for alleged trespassing, burglary, property damage, assault, and theft.
[57] In another case, one of Gardner's prosecutors entered in a plea deal with the defendant without telling the family of the victim, which violates state law.
[58] On January 12, 2022, Gardner's office was forced to drop charges against an alleged car bomber due to violating his rights to a speedy trial.
[62] The judge dismissed the case since Gardner's office failed for months to provide reports to the defense after multiple court orders to do so.
[66] The AG subpoenaed records from the university's School of Nursing related to Gardner's attendance, to ascertain if she was complying with the law that requires her to "devote her full time and energy" to her job as the Circuit Attorney.
Gardner ran against three Democratic opponents to secure her post as Circuit Attorney in the 2016 elections, following the retirement of Jennifer Joyce.
She also promised to increase diversity, bring independent investigations of police use of force, work to reduce racial disparities, and enhance gun control.