Special prosecutor in Greitens ride-along case set to moderate GOP Senate debate
A special prosecutor will decide whether to bring charges against a police officer in connection to former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens’ April ride-along with Kansas City police that was criticized for politicizing the department.
The special prosecutor, Darrell Moore, was appointed in late April by Presiding Platte County Judge Thomas Fincham days after the police department launched a criminal investigation of the incident. Kansas City police said Missouri law strictly prohibits political activity while on the job.
Moore is the executive director of the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys. Moore was previously the Greene County Prosecuting Attorney and a deputy Missouri attorney general.
Moore is set to co-moderate a debate among the Missouri Republican candidates for U.S. Senate on Tuesday night. He said his role presented no conflict of interest.
The ride-along originated from the police department’s North Patrol Division located in Platte County.
Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd told The Star on Tuesday that he asked Fincham to appoint a special prosecutor, given his past support of the former governor. In 2016, Zahnd was a statewide co-chair of Greitens’ campaign for governor and was also on Greitens’ inaugural leadership committee.
“I supported Eric Greitens’ campaign for Governor and was a member of his Gubernatorial Inauguration Committee. For that reason, I believed it was best to turn the matter over to a special prosecutor to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of Interest in the case,” Zahnd, a longtime Republican, said in a text message.
The investigation is narrow and will determine whether the KCPD employee, identified through court records as Capt. David Loar, violated state statute involving political activity.
Moore is set to moderate a debate between the Missouri Republican candidates for U.S. Senate on Tuesday night in Springfield. He was selected to moderate the debate about three months ago before the ride-along occurred.
“One of the questions is not going to be on this issue,” Moore said of the ride-along.
However, it isn’t clear whether Greitens plans to participate. He hasn’t attended past debates.
Greitens’ campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Those two are totally separate issues,” Moore said. “There’s no violation of any ethical rule. I do not have a personal relationship with the police officer involved or Mr. Greitens.”
“A moderator’s role is simply to be a neutral facilitator of questions,” he said.
Moore said worked as a prosecutor for over 28 years which meant running for elected office and that he can evaluate cases impartially. He said he has previously filed criminal charges against police officers, even though as a prosecutor he knows officers.
The criminal investigation stems from Greitens’ April 22 ride-along with KCPD’s North Patrol Division in Platte County. Greitens posted a video to social media during the ride-along that was later deleted at the request of police, who said official approval to film during the ride along was not obtained in advance.
The video at one point showed an image of a KCPD vehicle. In one tweet, Greitens said, “Tonight, I’m riding along with @kcpolice,” according to screenshots posted online.
Capt. Leslie Foreman, a police spokeswoman, said the department is wrapping up the investigation and hope to get it to the prosecutor’s office soon. The officer remains on paid suspension at this time, Foreman told The Star.
The department has previously said the criminal investigation is related to political activity that officers are prohibited from engaging in.
Chapter 84 of Missouri statutes includes provisions dealing with Kansas City police. Among them is a prohibition on officers or other department employees from being connected with political work on behalf of candidates “while on duty or while wearing the official uniform of the department.”
Greitens, who resigned as governor in 2018 amid allegations of sexual assault, took the ride-along hours after the Missouri Fraternal Order of Police endorsed Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, one of Greitens’ Republican opponents in the Senate race.
This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 4:42 PM.