A lawsuit aimed at forcing St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner to hand over records relating to the prosecution of former governor Eric Greitens is likely to drag on for some months, according to the head of the legal team for the plaintiff.
This is despite a judge saying the defendant's conduct in the action "has recklessly impeded the judicial process" and ordering the handover of records relating to communications, including emails, linked to the prosecution of Greitens by Dec. 3.
Dave Roland, the director of litigation for the right libertarian leaning Freedom Center of Missouri, said the judge's order states that Gardner must hand over to the court full records or a log that reveals some details of correspondence but not the entire document if she is claiming privilege.
In a statement to Fox News, a spokesperson for Gardner said: “The office is reviewing to determine next options.”
"I do not think they are going to give any actual records, (and) strongly suspect they are not going to identify all the records," said Roland, who added that, depending on a review of what is handed over, the plaintiff may go back and argue others exist. The action could continue for some months, he said.
Roland's client, Washington DC-based journalist John Solomon, has asked for communications between Gardner, or members of her team, and approximatively a dozen individuals, including state representatives and, notably, the billionaire investor and philanthropist George Soros.
Solomon believes there were communications with Soros, but this has not been confirmed and, if so, whether any are linked to Greitens.
"I am agnostic about that," said Roland on any possible back and forth between Soros and Gardner's office, the type or if any at all.
Roland said his organization's involvement centers on making sure the circuit court attorney abides by Missouri's Sunshine Law. He said Gardner has "blown away" every deadline in this action, but believes that she will abide by this one because the judge has lost patience.
In his order. St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Christopher McGraugh said: "The record contradicts a finding of mistake or inadvertence.”
Roland said the defendant has not engaged in the normal litigation process by fully arguing in open court the merits of her case.
On the reasons for not doing so, Roland said: "It is damn peculiar, cannot imagine why (as it) should have been a very straight forward process, should have been resolved months ago."
He added: "I do not know but maybe they have something they really, really want to keep hidden."
Former governor Greitens was charged with invasion of privacy after being accused of taking a picture of his blindfolded mistress. The case was dropped but Greitens resigned as governor.