By Marshall Griffin, KWMU
Jefferson City, MO – The political battle over who will be Missouri's next Attorney General is getting uglier.
The latest television ad from Democrat Chris Koster claims that Republican nominee Michael Gibbons supported the release of a prisoner convicted of murdering a 19-year-old woman that's referred to in the ad as a, quote, "young girl."
Gibbons is demanding that the commercial be pulled.
"I've never supported clemency for a murderer...we are notifying Senator Koster that this is false, it's factually false...if it's not pulled off (the air), we will pursue our legal remedies," Gibbons said in a conference call with reporters.
KWMU's Marshall Griffin asked, "Does that legal remedy possibly include a lawsuit?"
Gibbons responded: "We're going to notify (Koster) and...it could be."
Earlier this week, the Gibbons campaign began airing an ad accusing Koster of not paying his taxes and of writing bad checks more than 10 years ago.
In response, Koster Communications Director Danny Kanner released the following statement:
"Our most recent television ad is factually-accurate in describing Michael Gibbons as a Jefferson City politician with a record of using his political influence to let criminals out of jail. While it may not be politically convenient for Senator Gibbons that he supported clemency for the brutal murderer of a 19-year old girl, the reporting of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has been undisputed for more than six months and speaks for itself. We absolutely will continue to present the clear choice in this race to Missouri voters -- a prosecutor who spent a decade putting criminals behind bars, or a politician who has repeatedly supported letting them out."