Joined by local business owners, City of Columbia residents, and Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson, University of Missouri System President Mun Choi got a glimpse of the downtown Columbia nightlife scene in a walkthrough of the city late Saturday night.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia’s leader of the office of violence prevention D’Markus Thomas-Brown says he supports continued efforts from Columbia Police Chief Jill Schlude to keep the city safe. That includes recent efforts announced by city leaders and the University of Missouri to target crime in the downtown area. Efforts include increasing staffing at the
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia Police Chief Jill Schlude sat down with ABC 17 News on Friday to discuss changes the department is making to make downtown Columbia safer on the weekends. On most Friday and Saturday nights, nearly half of CPD’s on-duty officers are placed downtown. Following a shooting last weekend on East Broadway, Schlude
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Columbia man who is charged for his alleged role in a standoff on April 11 on West Ash Street has been committed to the Department of Mental Health. A commitment order was filed on Tuesday for Michael Whited, 59. He is charged with second-degree making a terroristic threat, resisting arrest and
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Blair Oaks school district went on a “soft lockdown” on Friday after the district received a “suspicious” phone call. Cole County Sheriff John Wheeler told ABC 17 News that the school received a “vague” phone call around 2 p.m. Law enforcement determined the threat was not credible and school continued as
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Gov. Mike Kehoe appointed Paul Boyd on Friday to become Montgomery County’s next prosecuting attorney, according to a Friday press release from the governor’s office. The release says Boyd is the violent crimes team lead for the Boone County Prosecutor’s Office and has previously served as a counterdrug coordinator and military judge
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia Public Schools said a police call to Hickman High School on Friday morning did not involve a student with a weapon. Hickman principal Mary Grupe sent a message to parents on Friday about the call. The district said the incident involved just one student, which had been “fully addressed and resolved.”
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Jefferson City man has been charged after authorities claim he shot at two people on May 9 in Boonville. Fernando Townshend was charged on Thursday in Cooper County with first-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action. Janiya Rucker, of Jefferson City, was charged with being an accessory
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Fulton man on Thursday was sentenced to serve 17-and-half years in federal prison on Wednesday for producing child pornography, according to a press release from the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Robert Wayne Stuart, 37, was arrested in September 2023 for multiple investigations surrounding child pornography and child exploitation. He was charged
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Jefferson City man was charged with five felonies after he allegedly gave a 12-year-old girl marijuana edibles and pointed a pellet gun at her head. Novy Lairmore, 18, was charged in Cole County with giving a controlled substance to a child, giving marijuana to a child and three counts of first-degree
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A woman who is charged with first-degree murder in Cole County has been indicted in another case. Rejeane Redmon, 29, of Jefferson City was charged in 2023 with first-degree murder, armed criminal action and tampering with evidence in the death of 80-year-old Melvin Callahan. She is being held in the Cole County Jail and has
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A plea hearing has been scheduled for Monday for a woman accused of shooting at another woman last year in the parking lot of the Conley Road Walmart in Columbia. Whitney Eliesh Nevels-McKee, 37, of Columbia, is charged with two counts of carjacking, three counts of armed criminal action, one count of second-degree kidnapping,
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Pettis County prosecutor won’t file charges against a former Sedalia city councilman. Prosecutor Tony Farkas told ABC 17 News on Thursday that he decided not to pursue a case against Tom Oldham. Farkas said his office made the decision in mid-August. Oldham stepped down from his post on the Sedalia City
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that people accused of crimes have the right to a fair and speedy trial. But for those waiting for state-mandated mental health treatment before trial, speedy isn’t always the case. Jeanette Simmons, deputy director of the Missouri Department of Mental Health, said around 500
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Auditing criminal cases arising from incidents downtown and adding county deputies and state troopers to patrol shifts are among the plans Columbia and University of Missouri leaders have for reducing crime. MU and the City of Columbia on Wednesday put out a list of actions they’re taking to make downtown safer after
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Flowers, photos, balloons and candles were seen outside of a Columbia bar on Wednesday for a Stephens College student who was killed in a shooting over the weekend. Aiyanna Williams, 21, of Columbia, died after she was shot early Saturday morning in downtown Columbia. The memorial was placed outside of Nash Vegas
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A woman pleaded not guilty in court on Wednesday to firing a gun in a north Columbia early last month. Tanajee Hickem-Ricketts, 30, of Columbia, was charged in September with unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action. She was booked into the Boone County Jail around 1 p.m. Tuesday and
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) University of Missouri System President Mun Choi is inviting City of Columbia officials to take to the streets with him Saturday evening for a walkthrough of downtown Columbia, according to an email obtained by ABC 17 News. “You’ll be able to witness for yourself what business owners, your constituents, students and parents
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) An Eldon man was charged in Pettis County after he allegedly attacked another man with a metal bar and rammed his truck into the man’s vehicle on Sept. 26. Tyler McCue, 50, was charged with first-degree burglary, second-degree assault, armed criminal action, leaving the scene of an accident and first-degree property damage.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Missouri immigration lawyer says due to new immigration policies, he has had to stop taking on removal cases for immigrants in detention. “Changes to the immigration court system, how evidence is being evaluated, how charges are being brought, people are being placed in removal proceedings with far greater ease,” said David
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