St. Louis County prosecutor outlines audit response, new units and tech reforms to cut backlog and prioritize victims

Prosecuting Attorney Melissa Price Smith told the St. Louis County Council Committee of the Whole on Aug. 25 that her office enacted a series of administrative and operational changes after she took office in January, emphasizing a shift to a "victim-centered" approach and moves intended to speed case review.

Smith said the office immediately enforced existing food and travel rules, that attorneys do not carry office credit cards and that most intern and grand-jury meals are paid from discretionary funds. She said the office implemented a mandatory supervisor signature on all time sheets effective Jan. 10, 2025, and required staff to use paid time off for outside employment during work hours.

Smith outlined several prosecution units she reconstituted or created after being sworn in Jan. 3, 2025: a reinstated violent-crime unit, a dedicated homicide unit led in part by Mike Riley (recruited from the U.S. Attorney's Office), a special victims unit (renamed SVU to include elder-abuse cases), a hospital-violence unit, a domestic-violence team under new leadership, and a retail-theft unit focused on…