New judge assigned to hear St. Louis stadium lawsuit

ST. LOUIS -- A new St. Louis judge will hear the lawsuit against the city regarding a public vote on funding for a football stadium.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports St. Louis Circuit Court's presiding judge, Bryan Hettenback, reassigned the case to Judge Joan Moriarty after Judge David Dowd removed himself from the matter.

Hettenback says Dowd is under a doctor's order and "is simply unable to handle the case in a timely way."

The public board that runs the Edward Jones Dome where the Rams play argued in the lawsuit that a 2002 ordinance requiring a public vote before tax dollars are used on a new stadium is "overly broad, vague and ambiguous."

The board wants the court to rule that law doesn't apply, conflicts with Missouri statutes or is unconstitutional.