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Missouri Won't Pay The Lawyers Greitens Had Secured Over Possible Impeachment

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens faces two felony charges.
Andrea Tudhope
/
KCUR 89.3 file photo
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens faces two felony charges.

Updated 1:45 p.m. June 15, 2018, with new amount due — The state of Missouri won't pay more than $120,000 to two attorneys former Gov. Eric Greitens' office hired ahead of possible impeachment proceedings, the state Office of Administration said Thursday.

Office of Administration Commissioner Sarah Steelman said in a letter that it appears the primary beneficiary of the attorneys' work was Greitens himself and that the governor's office "at most received incidental benefits" from the attorneys' services. Greitens also had attorneys representing him in his personal capacity.

The Office of Administration initally said Eddie Greim of the Kansas City-based firm Graves Garrett billed $118,000 and Connecticut-based attorney Ross Garber bill $64,000. But on Friday, the agency said in an email that it "overstated the amount claimed due" because Greim had sent two invoices two weeks apart with the same amount. Dividing in half the amount Steelman claimed in her letter of $118,067.49 shows Greim's invoice is $59,033.75.

Greim told KCUR in an email Thursday night that the state agency was "under a clear legal duty to approve payment," and that he hasn't been in contact with the Office of Administration.

Greim provided an example of his work: "I accepted a subpoena that the House of Representatives directed to the Governor’s Office — not to the Governor personally — and worked with Mr. Garber on a response, which consisted of a production of official staff emails and a memorandum outlining the response of the Office. This and other work was on behalf of the Office of the Governor, not Eric Greitens personally."

Greim also said he doesn't believe the state will have all officeholders "personally find and pay their own lawyers when they receive demands for official records maintained by the state," and that the agency will "approve the payment, as it is required to do under Missouri law" once it talks with him and Garber.

Garber told the AP that it looks like the attorneys are caught in a "politically motivated fight."

Steelman is a former Republican state treasurer and senator who was appointed administration commissioner by Greitens when he took office as governor in 2017. She has continued to serve in the role under Republican Gov. Mike Parson, who ascended from the lieutenant governor's office after Greitens resigned June 1.

KCUR's Lisa Rodriguez contributed to this report.

Copyright 2021 KCUR 89.3. To see more, visit KCUR 89.3.

Erica Hunzinger brings several years of editing experience to the politics and education team. Before landing in St. Louis, Erica spent five years on The Associated Press' Central Region desk, handling a wide variety of topics with special emphasis on state government and agriculture and food supply. She also has been a sports copy editor at The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, and an assistant news editor at The News Journal in Delaware. Erica holds a master's degree in humanities from the University of Chicago (poetry) and bachelor's in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. If you can't find her, try looking at Busch Stadium — or any other ball diamond in the region.
The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.
Erica Hunzinger
Erica Hunzinger is the editor of Harvest Public Media, based at KCUR.