Steve Roberts (Missouri politician)

Steven Roberts (born 1988/1989)^[1] is a Democratic politician serving in the 5th district of the Missouri Senate. Roberts' election on January 6, 2021, made him the youngest black State Senator in Missouri history.^[2] He serves as the Minority Whip of the Missouri Senate.

Steve Roberts
Member of the Missouri Senate from the 5th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 6, 2021
Preceded by	Jamilah Nasheed
Member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 77th district
In office January 4, 2017 – January 6, 2021
Preceded by	Kimberly Gardner
Succeeded by	Kimberly-Ann Collins
Personal details
Born	1988 or 1989 (age 35–36) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	University of Miami (BS) Pepperdine University (JD)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Air Force
Rank	Captain
Unit	Air National Guard

Early life and education

Steven Craig Roberts, II was born in St. Louis, Missouri to Eva Frazer, a medical doctor, and Steven Craig Roberts, Sr., a former St. Louis alderman.^[3]

Roberts graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Communication Studies and received his Juris Doctor degree from Pepperdine University School of Law. In law school, Roberts worked in the U.S. Congress as a legislative intern; as a certified law clerk with the District Attorney’s Office in Compton, California; and assisted the Counsel to Secure Justice in New Delhi, India. During his final semester, Roberts worked with a clinic in Los Angeles, California that assisted with refugees fleeing persecution obtain asylum in the United States.^[4]

After completing law school, Roberts joined AP Wireless Infrastructure Partners, LLC.^[5]

Military career

Roberts joined the Missouri Air National Guard in 2018. After completing the Total Force Officer Training at Maxwell Air Force Base, Roberts was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force; dually serving as both a member of the Missouri Air National Guard as well as a member of the United States Air Force.^[6]

Roberts was promoted to the rank of Captain after graduating from the United States Air Force’s Judge Advocate Staff Officer Course (JASOC) in 2021.^[3]

Political career

Circuit Attorney's office

Roberts served as a St. Louis assistant circuit attorney when he was arrested for sexual assault in April 2015. Roberts was suspended by the Circuit Attorney’s Office and the Circuit Attorney’s Office launched an independent investigation into Roberts. Jillian S. Anderson, an assistant prosecuting attorney in St. Charles County, served as the outside investigator.^[7] Following Anderson's investigation, the office deferred prosecution of Roberts and ended his suspension.

In October of 2015, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce fired Roberts. While Roberts' spokesperson claimed the office did not provide a reason for firing him, Circuit Attorney Joyce stated, “we can say conclusively that his termination was a result of his poor performance. No other factors were involved.”^[8]

Joyce also further elaborated that Roberts was “provided written notice of his performance issues and he has met dozens of times with his supervisors who worked diligently to help him succeed at the office. The Circuit Attorney’s Office has been more than fair with Mr. Roberts, including allowing him to return to the office after no charges were filed following his recent arrest.”^[9] Roberts maintains he was asked to resign after he began collecting campaign money to run for Circuit Attorney.^[10][11]

Missouri Legislature

Roberts defeated three opponents during the 2016 Missouri House of Representatives District 77 Democratic primary and served 2 two-year terms. He ran unopposed in the General Election. Incumbent Roberts then defeated Kimberly-Ann Collins in his second Democratic primary on August 7, 2018, and won the General Election on November 6, 2018.^[12] While in the House, he was selected by his colleagues to serve as Chairman of the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus.

In 2020, Roberts successfully ran for the Missouri Senate’s 5th District.

U.S. Congress

Roberts ran for U.S. Congress in Missouri's 1st congressional district, running against incumbent Congresswoman Cori Bush, in which he garnered 26.6% of the vote in the Democratic primary.^[13]

Electoral history

2016

Missouri's 77th State House of Representatives District, Democratic Primary Election, August 2, 2016

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	1,900	39.57%	N/A
	Democratic	John Collins-Muhammad	1,280	26.66%	N/A
	Democratic	Jesse Todd	966	20.12%	N/A
	Democratic	Brian Elsesser	656	13.66%	N/A
Total votes			4,802	100

Missouri's 77th State House of Representatives District, General Election, November 8, 2016

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	12,142	100%	N/A
Total votes			12,142	100

2018

Missouri's 77th State House of Representatives District, Democratic Primary Election, August 7, 2018

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	3,212	53.01%	+13.44
	Democratic	Kimberly-Ann Collins	2,847	46.99%	N/A
Total votes			6,059	100

Missouri's 77th State House of Representatives District, General Election, November 6, 2018

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	10,834	100%	0
Total votes			10,834	100

2020

Missouri's 5th State Senate District, Democratic Primary, August 4, 2020^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	12,293	35.43%	N/A
	Democratic	Megan Ellyia Green	11,241	32.40%	N/A
	Democratic	Michelle Sherod	7,817	22.53%	N/A
	Democratic	William C. (Bill) Haas	2,068	5.96%	N/A
	Democratic	Jeremiah Church	893	2.57%	N/A
	Democratic	McFarlane Duncan	387	1.11%	N/A
Total votes			34,699	100

Missouri's 5th State Senate District, General Election, November 3, 2020^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	56,379	87.10%
	Republican	Michael Hebron	8,349	12.90%
	Democratic hold
Total votes			64,728	100

2022 U.S. Congress

Missouri 1st Congressional District Democratic Primary, 2022^[15]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Cori Bush (incumbent)	65,326	69.5
	Democratic	Steve Roberts	25,015	26.6
	Democratic	Michael Daniels	1,683	1.8
	Democratic	Ron Harshaw	1,065	1.1
	Democratic	Earl Childress	929	1.0
Total votes			94,018	100.0

Sexual assault allegations

The April 2015 arrest by St. Louis Metropolitan Police was on suspicion of second degree sodomy toward Saint Louis University student Amy Harms a week prior.^[16][17] In April 2017, the accuser's claim of infliction of emotional distress was also dismissed.^[18] Roberts settled a civil case arising from the incident for $100,000.^[19]

In 2016, incoming State Representative Cora Faith Walker accused Roberts of rape, which Roberts denied and, in response, filed a defamation lawsuit against Walker.^[17][18] In 2019, both Roberts and Walker dropped their respective legal actions, with their lawyers saying: "No money was paid in exchange for the dismissal of the parties' claims."^[20] The settlement required confidentiality from both parties, a $100,000 fine for each violation, and a statement in Walker's name disputing any claim of assault, which Roberts said the recently deceased Walker violated.^[21]

In 2022, allegations against Roberts resurfaced when it was found that content was removed from his Wikipedia page, from a Missouri State Capitol IP address.^[22]

References

1. Schallhorn, Kaitlyn (January 4, 2021). "Steven Roberts Makes Missouri Senate History While Focused on Responsibility". The Missouri Times. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
2. Schallhorn, Kaitlyn (2021-01-04). "Steven Roberts makes Missouri Senate history while focused on responsibility". The Missouri Times. Retrieved 2022-02-06.
3. "Missouri Senate: Senator Steven Roberts". Missouri Senate. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
4. "50 for 50 Spotlight: Steven Roberts (JD '13) - Surf Report | Pepperdine School of Law".
5. "State Representative Steve Roberts Commissioned as Officer in the U.S. Air Force". The Missouri Times. October 3, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
6. "State Representative Steve Roberts Commissioned as Officer in the U.S. Air Force". The Missouri Times. 2019-10-03. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
7. Byers, Robert Patrick, Christine. "St. Louis assistant circuit attorney won't be prosecuted". STLtoday.com. Retrieved 2022-02-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
8. Patrick, Robert. "St. Louis circuit attorney fires prosecutor running to replace her". STLtoday.com. Retrieved 2022-02-06.
9. Patrick, Robert. "St. Louis circuit attorney fires prosecutor running to replace her". STLtoday.com. Retrieved 2022-02-06.
10. Byers, Christine. "Missouri Congressional candidate releases terms of settlement with woman who accused him of rape". kdsk.com. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
11. Patrick, Robert. "St. Louis circuit attorney fires prosecutor running to replace her". STLtoday.com. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
12. "Steve Roberts (Missouri state legislator)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
13. "Missouri House District 1 Democratic Primary Election Results and Maps 2022 | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2023-06-19.
14. "Steve Roberts (Missouri state legislator)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
15. "State of Missouri – Primary Election, August 02, 2022" (PDF). Missouri Secretary of State. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
16. Messenger, Tony (October 7, 2016). "Messenger: Rape allegation inspires previous Roberts accuser to speak up". STLtoday.com (St. Louis Post-Dispatch). Retrieved 2022-02-06.
17. Wang, Amy B (2016-10-03). "In 'serious and disturbing' letter, incoming Missouri lawmaker accuses another of raping her". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
18. Heffernan, Erin (2019-12-03). "Woman who accused state lawmaker of sexual assault dismisses suit". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Archived from the original on 2019-12-03. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
19. "Missouri's Steven Roberts Settled Groping Allegation Suit for $100,000". theintercept.com. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
20. Holleman, Joe. "Missouri state legislators who sued each other over rape claim dismiss lawsuits". STLtoday.com. Retrieved 2022-02-06.
21. Holleman, Joe (April 19, 2022). "Steve Roberts reveals terms of settlement with Cora Faith Walker over rape claim". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
22. Lacy, Akela (March 21, 2022). "Sexual Assault Allegations Vanished From Potential Cori Bush Challenger's Wikipedia Page". The Intercept. Retrieved 2022-04-20.