What does the St. Louis police department have to hide from local news consumers about the city’s homicide cases that the department is otherwise willing to share with news consumers in Washington? Given St. Louis’ still-high homicide rates, it’s reasonable to ask how many of these cases remain under active investigation, how many have been cleared and how many are sitting in limbo. The answers would help St. Louisans determine how effectively police officers and detectives are doing their jobs.
One way to hide a potentially embarrassing result is to prevent local news consumers from knowing about it. The police department’s newfound reluctance to provide clearance-status information that was previously available to the public should be troubling to any St. Louisan who demands results in getting murderers off the streets.
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St. Louis Public Radio recently noted a statistic previously reported by this newspaper: Even though the city’s homicide rate reached a 30-year high in 2020 following years of steady increases, the number of homicide investigations actually closed by the police department had dropped. Only 36% of homicide cases were cleared in 2020. The station, along with American Public Media’s APM Reports, sought 10 years’ worth of additional information from the city about cleared cases, including victims’ names, ages, race, the location of each crime and whether an arrest was made.
The Washington Post filed the same request four years ago, and the city fulfilled that newspaper’s request and even updated the information a year later. But when local public radio filed its own request, the response was a politely worded, caveat-laced refusal. The city contends that information about the clearance status of cases counts as part of the investigation report and, therefore, isn’t subject to Sunshine Law disclosure.
This nonsensical refusal prompted a Nov. 21 lawsuit by Minnesota Public Radio, parent company of American Public Media.
Keeping the public informed should never have required the resort to a lawsuit simply to force the city to comply with the state’s Sunshine Law. The lack of transparency coincides with increasing criticism by politicians and family members of victims that the police department seems more interested in protecting its image than keeping the public informed.
“When you’re worried about your reputation in the community, and you don’t know where to turn, one of the easiest things to do is guard closely things that can be manipulated and used against you,” former city prosecutor Rachel Smith told St. Louis Public Radio.
Mayor Tishaura Jones has repeatedly stated her commitment to transparency. But transparency must never be limited just to the data that casts an administration in a positive light. True transparency means a warts-and-all approach. The city cannot provide better policing if it won’t even acknowledge where it is falling short in bringing murderers to justice.