News

As the government shutdown freezes some benefits for families of U.S. service members, a Columbia nonprofit group is stepping in to help the family of a fallen Marine. MarineParents.com raised $10,000 Wednesday for the family of Lance Corporal Jeremiah Collins. He was killed Saturday while serving in Afghanistan. Because of the shutdown, benefits typically given

Two years after asking taxpayers for a twelve cent tax levy increase, the Columbia Public School district plans to ask for another 4 cents. This is part of just one bond issue the district hopes voters approve over the next seven years. By 2020, the total could reach $170 million in bonds. In order to

Emergency crews closed off a section of Walnut Street Wednesday evening to investigate a potential threat. Around 5 p.m., officers received a report of a gas can that was left unattended near the Columbia Police Department. After the discovery, police closed off Walnut Street as a precaution and emergency crews investigated the suspicious item. No

A man suspected of stealing from an elderly woman in Maries County is behind bars in Springfield. The Vienna Police Department says Stacy Roy Eason, 46, of Houston, Mo., was arrested Wednesday in Springfield. Officials say Eason is a conman and has been investigated by multiple law enforcement agencies statewide. They say he would trick

A fuel spill shut down part of a busy road in west Columbia Wednesday afternoon. Around 2:30 p.m., Columbia fire crews were called to the intersection of Bernadette Drive and Tiger Lane after a fuel tank had separated from a truck. Columbia Fire Department Battalion Chief James Weaver says 75 to 100 gallons of diesel

A Miller County bus driver died while on her route Tuesday afternoon. Phyllis Rush, 65, of Eugene, died while driving her afternoon route on Opal Drive near Ulman Ridge Road. She was a driver for the Miller County R-3 School District. Authorities say Rush suffered a medical emergency while driving then lost control of the

San Francisco 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith was charged Wednesday with three felony counts of illegal possession of an assault weapon, stemming from a party at his home in June 2012. The Santa Clara County district attorney’s office said in announcing the charges that Smith is expected to surrender on his own later this month. The

A Cole County grand jury indicted a Jefferson City Correctional Center inmate with first-degree murder Wednesday morning. Terry Volner, 24, is accused of beating his cellmate, 67-year-old Jose Benitez, to death in the maximum security prison back in July. The Missouri Attorney General’s Office says they will seek the death penalty against Volner. Prosecutors believe

One person is dead and two others are injured after a single-car crash in Montgomery County early Wednesday morning. The Missouri State Highway Patrol say Robert M. Scarlet, 19, of Montgomery City, was driving on Boonslick Road around 1:30 a.m. when he lost control of the car. The car then traveled off the road and

Multiple alleged meth lab operators have been captured in Osage County. Deputies tell ABC 17 News they made a meth lab bust near Highway 50 in Linn Tuesday afternoon. As authorities arrived on the scene for a domestic disturbance tied to an eviction notice, three people fled from the scene. Deputies pursued the suspects on

Thieves are targeting rural homes and businesses in Cole, Callaway, Boone, and Miller counties. “The majority of the thefts have been out of sheds around some of the rural areas and farms and things like that,” Cole County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Gary Hill said. “We actually had one shed that was broken into that was

One Columbia program is still on hold tonight after government budget cuts. More than 100 staff members are without work at the University of Missouri extension’s nutrition education program. Employees of the program work every day of the year helping low-income families in Columbia improve their lives. The program director said staff is standing by

A special board of aldermen met in Ashland Tuesday to discuss the controversial suspension of an alderman. Now the board wants to kick him off for good. Second Ward Alderman Jeff Anderson was suspended in September. The board sent him a letter saying the suspension happened because of his attempts to circumvent the board and

The city of Moberly is seeking financial guidance to help restore its credit rating. Currently, the city’s credit rating is at a B. Two years ago, an artificial sweetener plant was supposed to open in Moberly. It cost the city nearly $40 million in bonds. The Mamtek plant never opened, and the city is still

Police are investigating a suspicious incident at a Columbia fast food restaurant Monday night. Officers were called to the Taco Bell off Stadium Boulevard around 8:40 p.m. for a report of a bomb threat. An employee told ABC 17 News the threat prompted the restaurant to evacuate. Columbia police would only confirm it was a

Boone County authorities have arrested a man for a Tuesday afternoon shooting that injured a woman. Around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, authorities received a call of a victim with a gunshot wound to the head near 6001 N. Creasy Spring Road, in the Apple Grove Trailer Park. Authorities say a 42-year-old woman’s ear was “grazed” by

A man convicted of attacking and raping a woman on the Katy Trail near Sedalia was sentenced for those crimes Tuesday. Ronald Greer, 45, was sentenced to four life in prison terms plus seven years by Pettis County Circuit Judge Robert Koffman. Two of the sentences do not allow for parole. Greer was on parole

The capital city was officially named the “Most Beautiful Small Town” in the United States. The survey, part of Rand McNally’s 2013 Best of the Road contest, highlighted the city’s views of the Missouri River, the Missouri Capitol Building, and Main Street. Rand McNally also said Jefferson City received the third most votes overall in

Boone County sheriff’s deputies arrested a Columbia man Monday on suspicion of breaking into cars and stealing property from the vehicles. People living near Timothy Court north of Columbia called deputies to report someone burglarizing cars and taking stuff from them. While searching for the suspect, a deputy says he saw Gary Gonzales, 35, trying

Columbia city leaders have agreed upon a plan to guide their decisions concerning the next 20 years. The hundred-plus page document “Columbia Imagined” was approved unanimously at Monday night’s City Council meeting. “Columbia Imagined” is a comprehensive plan on how residents will live and grow as the city expands. The plan includes several topics: land