St. Louis county executive campaign gets heated

St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley's new campaign ad accuses his primary opponent of condoning sex trafficking, a charge that the opponent says "rises to the level of defamation." The ad that began airing Wednesday cites County Councilman Steve Stenger's legal representation of a man in a 2000 prostitution case. The ad alleges that Stenger "blamed the victims" as part of his defense. Dooley campaign spokeswoman Linda Goldstein told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the decision to air the ad was "difficult," but that Dooley thought it imperative to let women know. The Stenger campaign issued an immediate response to the advertisement where Stenger says he was ordered to take the case by the court. The two men are opponents in the Democratic primary on Aug. 5.