KINLOCH, Mo. (AP) - Incoming Kinloch Mayor Betty McCray arrived at City Hall Thursday only to have the city attorney attempt to serve her with impeachment papers.

According to documents obtained by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (https://bit.ly/1z0WZo1 ) through a records request, the city has raised concerns to the St. Louis County Board of Elections and the Missouri Secretary of State about people being registered to vote in Kinloch who no longer live there. On April 2, the city gave the election board a list of 27 names of people who it claimed were illegally registered.

McCray had defeated Mayor Darren Small on April 7 with 38 votes to his 18. Another candidate, Theda Wilson, received two votes.

City Attorney James Robinson said the Board of Aldermen voted to suspend McCray on Monday. He served McCray with impeachment charges Thursday when she attempted to enter City Hall. Robinson also told Alderman Eric Petty, an ally of McCray’s, that the board had drafted articles of impeachment against him.

“You may be the attorney now, but I promise you, you won’t be later,” McCray said as she refused to accept the impeachment papers.

The new mayor also called the voter fraud allegations “absurd.”

“It never came up until I ran for mayor,” McCray said, adding that people were still living at the addresses the city claims are empty. McCray is currently seeking legal representation to address the impeachment charges.

County Republican Election Director Gary Fuhr has responded to the city’s complaints by sending canvassers to verify that voters were registered to correct addresses. He declined to say what canvassers found.

Kinloch once thrived with more than 10,000 residents, but saw its share of decline in the 1980s. Today, Kinloch has fewer than 300 residents.

The city has weathered much political misfortune in the last five years, including the imprisonment of a former mayor on federal fraud and theft charges and the hiring of a convicted felon as city manager.

___

Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, https://www.stltoday.com

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC.