Constitutional Law : Separation of Powers – Apportionment – State Agency

Stephanie Maniscalco//December 28, 2017

Where the state public defender claimed that the governor’s withholding of funds appropriated by the general assembly to the public defender violated the Missouri Constitution, (1) the governor’s actions were proper as the public defender does not exercise judicial power in representing indigent defendants, so a withholding of expenditures to it by the governor does not violate separation of powers and (2) As the public defender is a state agency, the governor had the authority to reduce the expenditures of the public defender below their appropriations without reducing the expenditures of the state as a whole as nothing requires the reduction of expenditures of state agencies to be proportionate.

Judgment is affirmed.

Barrett v. Greitens (MLW No. 71262/Case No. WD80837 – 16 pages)(Mo.Ct.App. W.D. Howard, J.) Appealed from the Circuit Court of Cole County, Beetem, J. (John G. Mermelstein for appellants) (Dean J. Sauer for respondent; Michael C. Martinich-Sauter co-counsel for respondent).

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