ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. St. Louis County Prosecutor Melissa Price Smith will hold a news conference on Tuesday, May 6, to discuss her first 100 days in office and highlight key reforms.
Price Smith is expected to focus on reforms aimed at enhancing public safety, increasing efficiency, and improving accountability within her office. The news conference will take place at 10:30 a.m. at the St. Louis County Justice Center.
“We reinstated our violent crime unit the afternoon that I was sworn in,” Price Smith said. “That is currently up and running. It reviews violent crime in real time.”
One of Price Smith’s first actions was reinstating the county’s violent crime unit, which reviews violent crime cases in real time to prevent delays in processing repeat offenders.
Price Smith’s office achieved its first jury conviction for murder, with Rodney Collins sentenced to life in prison for the August 2023 killing of William Gholson. Price Smith’s office claims it also reduced a significant backlog of cases by 43 percent and has brought on three veteran federal prosecutors to lead the homicide team.
In addition to prosecutorial reforms, Price Smith’s office has saved taxpayers $18,000 by identifying unused office technology, such as iPads and iPhones, that were still active but hadn’t been tracked or turned in.
Price Smith emphasized the importance of re-imagining resource usage, stating, “We definitely don’t have increased funding.”
Looking ahead, Price Smith aims to continue community outreach, streamline courtroom processes, and focus on removing repeat violent offenders from the streets.
Price Smith’s efforts in her first 100 days have focused on improving efficiency and accountability in the prosecutor’s office, with significant strides in reducing case backlogs and enhancing public safety measures.
All facts from this article were gathered by KTVI journalists. This article was converted into this format with assistance from artificial intelligence. It has been edited and approved by KTVI staff.