DNR goes with own attorney in legal dispute over Taum Sauk investigation

ST. LOUIS -- The Missouri Department of Natural Resources will no longer let Attorney General Jay Nixon represent the agency in its case against Ameren Corp. over the Taum Sauk reservoir collapse.

The move comes after DNR director Doyle Childers asked Nixon to recuse himself from the case June 7 because Nixon accepted $19,000 in campaign contributions that originated with Ameren. Nixon refused to step aside and returned the donations the next day.

DNR deputy director Kurt Schaefer said Monday the agency will now use its own lawyers to handle the case against Ameren.

Schaefer, who is DNR's head attorney, said he notified Ameren and Nixon's office about the change. He expects to meet with Ameren attorneys in the next few weeks to hold direct discussions on the matter.

Nixon has been in "complicated discussions" with Ameren but has not ruled out a criminal case against the St. Louis-based utility.

"We remain focused and hard at work with many others on this matter, despite the attempts to distract us with political chatter from bureaucrats," said Nixon spokesman John Fougere.

The legal dispute means Ameren must now negotiate separately with two state agencies over millions of dollars in damages caused by the Taum Sauk reservoir breach. The resulting flood devastated Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park -- which is operated by the DNR -- and damaged streams the DNR regulates. The deluge injured the park superintendent, his wife and three children.

Ameren spokeswoman Susan Gallagher refused to comment Monday. Federal investigators said in a report last month that Ameren delayed repairs at the reservoir that could have prevented the breach.

Schaefer said the DNR doesn't need to hire outside lawyers to handle the Ameren case because the agency has already done so much work on the accident, from clean-up efforts to research on Ameren's management of the reservoir.

"Obviously, we've been intimately involved with this thing since the morning it happened. Most of the information the Attorney General's office has I would assume is information that we have supplied to them," Schaefer said.

Schaefer said three DNR attorneys will likely work on the case, including himself.

Nixon is authorized to represent agencies like the DNR, but that doesn't mean agencies cannot act independently, Schaefer said.

The overlapping legal authority has led to conflict before.

In 2003, Nixon negotiated a settlement with Ameren over a fish kill near the company's Bagnell Dam in the Ozarks. But the Missouri Department of Conservation sued Nixon over the settlement, claiming the MDC had sole authority to recover damages from the incident because MDC is responsible for the state's wildlife.

The MDC dismissed its lawsuit after it reached a settlement with Nixon and Ameren.

MDC is also involved in the Taum Sauk reservoir case because thousands of acres of trees were destroyed. Assistant Director Denise Garnier said the agency is using its own attorneys to pursue legal action, but is cooperating with both the DNR and Nixon's office.