ST. LOUIS • Longtime city Recorder of Deeds Sharon Quigley Carpenter abruptly resigned the office she has held since 1980 after admitting to hiring a relative in violation of the state’s nepotism law.
But, in a brazen political move, Carpenter just as abruptly announced Friday that she is remaining a candidate for recorder while her chief deputy — whose son owns a construction company that was paid more than $100,000 to renovate the recorder’s office — runs the office in the interim.
The penalty for violating Missouri’s nepotism statute is strictly civil: The offender must “forfeit his office or employment.†Carpenter said her reading of the law meant that she can return to office if she is re-elected after forfeiting the office for the remainder of her term, which expires on Dec. 31.
Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce — a fellow Democrat — appeared to agree with that reading. She said the matter would be closed once Carpenter’s resignation is official on Monday.
People are also reading…
“The specific allegation of nepotism provides no legal basis for criminal prosecution,†Joyce said in a statement. “Ms. Carpenter admitted to violating a provision of the Missouri Constitution. The sole remedy for a violation of that provision is removal from office during the term when the specific conduct occurred. The investigation into the allegations remains open, until such time as her resignation becomes effective.â€
Carpenter admitted the hiring of her great-nephew, blaming it on her misreading of the state nepotism law.
Missouri law states that any public office holder who employs “any relative within the fourth degree, by consanguinity or affinity, shall thereby forfeit his office or employment.â€
A great-nephew is considered a fourth-degree relative, according to the .
In a letter to Mayor Francis Slay, she said she thought the word “within†applied to only first-, second- and third-degree relatives. In another letter to Democratic committee members, she said: “‘Within’ is a boundary word not an inclusive word.â€
“Not knowing the law or in my case, incorrect reading the law does not excuse violation of the law,†Carpenter said in the letter.
Carpenter, who was not available to answer reporter’s questions Friday, did not address the allegation concerning the office renovation.
Carpenter made headlines last month when she issued marriage licenses to four same-sex couples. She has held the office for three decades and has been in Democratic politics her entire adult life.
She was a volunteer for President John F. Kennedy’s 1960 campaign and met Kennedy at a Catholic youth conference in New York a week before he was assassinated in 1963.
She has been the 23rd Ward Democratic committeewoman since 1964. She was a close friend of Joyce’s mother, the late Nellene Joyce, who represented the ward until her death in the 1980s.
She was appointed to the recorder’s office in 1980, before winning her first term in 1982.
Ed McFowland, who faces Carpenter along with former Alderman Jimmie Matthews in a three-way Aug. 5 Democratic primary, issued an in June alleging Carpenter hired her great-nephew for work from 2010 to 2012. He also accused Carpenter of hiring a company owned by the son of her chief deputy, Peggy Treis Meeker, to perform $100,000 in office renovations.
Documents show Superior Building Group, owned by Jim Treis, was paid $108,123 from the recorder’s technology and preservation account.
On Friday, Meeker wouldn’t answer questions about whether there should have been a bidding process for the office renovation work.
“I’m confident our office is in order,†Meeker repeated several times.
The recorder has special discretion to spend money from user fees .
From that account, Carpenter paid about $12,000 to her great-nephew for “temporary employment†from 2010 to 2012.
While taking responsibility for the illegal hiring of her great-nephew, Carpenter also fought back in a letter to Democratic colleagues, accusing McFowland of receiving a felony conviction for failure to pay child support and having been sued several times for not paying personal property taxes.
“I’m no saint,†McFowland said on Friday. “I was unemployed for 18 months. It is kind of hard to pay everything when you don’t have a job.â€
Carpenter has been a fixture in Democratic circles and a leading voice in the city’s 23rd Ward, which has produced some of the city’s best-known politicians. She supported Slay’s nomination when he first became that ward’s alderman in 1985.
“I have known Sharon Carpenter most of my life,†Slay said on Friday. “For more than three decades, and in many ways, Sharon has tried to put the interests of the city first. Her decision today clearly reflects that intention.â€
Slay can’t name a replacement until Carpenter’s resignation is official.
