Kirkwood city hall gunman had financial problems

KIRKWOOD, Mo. -- The gunman accused of shooting seven people at Kirkwood City Hall in February was in deep financial trouble, though even those closest to him were not aware of the full extent.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Sunday that while it's well known that Charles "Cookie" Thornton lost his attempt to sue the city for millions, and faced more than $20,000 in fines from the suburban St. Louis community for code violations, his financial issues were much more involved.

Thornton shot and killed a police officer outside city hall on Feb. 7. He fatally shot a second officer inside, then two council members and the public works director. Thornton also wounded the mayor and a newspaper reporter before Kirkwood police shot and killed him.

Thornton had taken out hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans against his parents' two homes; he bought dump trucks for his demolition and asphalt business that were repossessed; he faced two liens taken out by the IRS against him for more than $200,000.

In the mid-1990s, Thornton supported efforts by developers to put in new retail properties in the Meacham Park neighborhood where he grew up, saying it would generate jobs and business.

'Guaranteed work'

Thornton's relatives said he told them he was promised a good portion of the demolition work in exchange for his support. City leaders said they told Thornton only that minority-owned businesses within Meacham Park would get preference.

Thornton never put together a formal bid, but went out and bought a construction truck. Paul Ward, a former council member, tried to help Thornton put together bids, but was unsuccessful in the attempt. "He believed that because he lived there he was guaranteed work, and that was that," Ward said.

Thornton did get a few demolition contracts, between $60,000 and $80,000 worth of work, Ward recalled. About 1995, when one of Thornton's competitors won a majority of the contracts, Thornton sued the developer and his competitor, alleging racism. The case was tossed out.

Thornton leased a run-down service station in 1999. He called it Cookco Construction's world headquarters, painted it and talked of future prosperity. "Everything at the time looked like he was on his way up," said Thornton's former attorney, Michael Gibbons, now a state senator.

But Thornton was almost $500,000 in debt. Between 1992 and 1998, he failed to file quarterly withholding tax returns 22 times. He owed his ex-wife more than $10,000 in child support for a daughter living in Florida.

Thornton filed for bankruptcy protection in December 1999 and was put on a plan to get out of debt. He would pay $4,425 a month for five years. Within four months, Thornton stopped making the payments.

Unable to pay the $1,675 monthly rent for his headquarters, he was evicted six months after he opened shop. He moved his business back to his parents' Meacham Park house. He stored his equipment on a lot across the street, a code violation that would spark his battles with Kirkwood government.

Blaming the city

Thornton received citations ranging from parking a commercial vehicle in a residential neighborhood to illegal dumping. In 2000, Thornton got nearly 60 tickets. The next year, he got 39. He eventually amassed more than $20,000 in fines.

He directed much of the blame for his problems at the city, showing up at city council meetings beginning in 2000. He often brought props to make his points and insulted council members.

His financial issues began to have an affect on other family members. Long after the family's home in Meacham Park had been paid off, Thornton refinanced the house for $72,000 in 2003. A year later, he refinanced his parents' retirement home in St. Petersburg, Fla., for $230,000.

He needed his brother, Arthur Thornton, to co-sign the refinancing of the St. Petersburg home. Arthur said he tentatively agreed, but his brother never passed along the loan documents and ultimately ended up forging his name.

"It was a bad deal," said Arthur, who rarely spoke to his brother afterward. That didn't stop Cookie from refinancing the St. Petersburg home again last year, this time getting a loan for $352,000. Records show the house went into foreclosure in January.

Since Thornton's death, the family found out that the Meacham Park house also is in foreclosure, where Thornton's mother and brother, Gerald Thornton, live.

No mental evaluation

After Thornton was arrested twice in 2006 for disrupting council meetings, Plummer talked with other city officials about having Thornton mentally evaluated. In the end, they decided not to intervene.

On Tuesday, two days before the shootings, Thornton called Joe Cole, a family friend, and told him that Thornton's federal suit had been tossed out. A judge ruled that Kirkwood did not violate his free-speech rights.

"He was talking off the wall," Cole said. "He was sniffling and crying." Thornton choked out something about the upcoming city council meeting.

"I just thought all he was going to do was go up to city hall and throw chairs," Cole said. "All he said was, 'They aren't going to get [away] with this.'"