Mo. prosecutor barred from cases after complaint

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A county prosecutor in eastern Missouri was temporarily barred from handling cases Thursday after the state attorney general claimed the prosecutor had acted as a defense attorney for a man facing a misdemeanor speeding charge.

Attorney General Chris Koster filed court documents Thursday seeking to oust Montgomery County prosecutor Lee Elliott from office. A short while later, Circuit Judge Keith Sutherland issued a preliminary order barring Elliott from engaging in any activity as a prosecutor.

Elliott declined to comment when contacted Thursday by The Associated Press.

"There are too many legal and factual issues to try to explain," Elliott said.

The attorney general's office says Elliott acted as a defense attorney for Jarod Hazel, who was facing a misdemeanor speeding charge, on March 7 in Montgomery City municipal court. Koster's office said Elliott recommended that the municipal judge make a favorable ruling toward his client that would have resulted in no points being assessed against his driver's license. State online court records on Thursday still listed Elliott as Hazel's attorney in the traffic case.

Hazel did not immediately return a telephone message Thursday.

Missouri law prohibits prosecutors from being employed by anyone other than the state in criminal cases. Koster's office said the misdemeanor traffic charge qualifies as a criminal case and that Elliott intentionally violated his duties as prosecutor.

Elliott's actions "created a conflict of interest and undermined the public confidence in the judicial system and the Montgomery County prosecutor's office," Koster said in court document supporting his request to oust Elliott.

Sutherland appointed prosecutor Mike Wright from neighboring Warren County to temporarily handle the duties of the Montgomery County prosecutor. Sutherland said he then recused himself from presiding over the case, meaning the state Supreme Court will have to appoint a judge to make a final determination on whether Elliott should be removed from office.

The Montgomery County prosecutor's office is a part-time position, so Elliott also operates a private law practice. State law allows prosecutors to continue to handle civil cases.

The attorney general's court filing said Elliott had been told in December that he could not legally represent an individual in a criminal proceeding.

Wright told the AP on Thursday that Elliott had asked him whether it would be OK for Elliott to represent a defendant in Warren County.

"I said I didn't think that was appropriate as long as he was prosecutor in Montgomery County," Wright said.

Elliott has left the prosecutor's office once before. Montgomery County Clerk Pam Cartee said that her office on Dec. 22 received a letter -- dated Dec. 14 -- in which Elliott resigned as prosecutor. But because he had won election to a new term in November, Elliott took office again in January when the new term began.