Gov. Mike Kehoe is calling on the Missouri Attorney General’s Office to investigate whether the St. Louis Board of Police Commissioners violated the state’s Sunshine Law when it approved a new contract for Police Chief Robert Tracy.
“While I remain supportive of the authority of the citizen-led St. Louis Board of Police Commissioners, their recent decision to fast-track Chief Tracy’s contract extension during a closed door, non-transparent process raises serious concerns,” Kehoe said. “I am requesting our state’s chief law enforcement officer initiate a thorough investigation into potential violations of open meeting requirements during this contract negotiation and take any necessary enforcement actions to ensure full compliance with the law.”
In an Oct. 23 letter to Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, Kehoe requested a review of the board’s handling of the meetings. Kehoe supported returning the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department to state oversight last year under House Bill 495.
The board approved a contract extending Tracy’s agreement through October 2030 and setting his base salary at $295,000. That is $112,000 more than the $183,000 starting salary under his previous contract, signed in December 2025.
The agreement was approved during a special meeting that was announced Friday afternoon and held virtually Saturday morning.
Mayor Cara Spencer, who sits on the board, also questioned how the negotiations were handled. Her office said she first learned about them at a board meeting Thursday and was given no context for that meeting or Saturday’s emergency session. Her office alleged that both meetings appeared to violate state open-meetings requirements.
Tracy’s previous contract ran through Jan. 1, 2029.
“It is a manufactured emergency,” Spencer said in a statement to The St. Louis American.
Board President Chris Saracino said commissioners acted quickly because another city was recruiting Tracy.
“With another city recruiting him, our Board acted quickly to keep that proven leadership here,” Saracino told The St. Louis American.