ST. LOUIS -- Black leaders accused a legislator of racism Friday for suggesting that Cardinals fans might want to carry rifles to baseball games if a new stadium was built in predominantly black East St. Louis, Ill.

A news conference held by the St. Louis Clergy Coalition became a shouting match when the lawmaker, Rep. Jim Murphy, unexpectedly showed up to defend himself.

Murphy said the remark wasn't racist, noting that impoverished East St. Louis has one of the highest crime rates in the country.

"Every week, the media puts a scene of a body found in a vacant lot over there," Murphy shouted at the Rev. Earl Nance, a coalition leader, and others in the group. "Is that where you want to go to the ballpark?"

Cardinals officials have said they would consider moving across the Mississippi River to Illinois if Missouri doesn't help them replace aging Busch Stadium.

A funding plan is under consideration in the Legislature. Murphy, a vocal opponent of using public money for the stadium, has said the Cardinals are bluffing.

Nance, who supports the ballpark proposal, said Murphy's comment was insulting to East St. Louis residents.