COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The average time a Missouri resident spends in an emergency department from arriving to leaving is 2 hours and 35 minutes, ranking the state 29th in the longest average wait time. Emergency department wait times have increased across the country and here in Missouri. According to the CDC, emergency departments in the
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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) Five hundred people in Missouri jails have been deemed incompetent to stand trial and are waiting for a bed with the Department of Mental Health. But there are no beds available. The state has 922 beds available for criminal commitment, or committing someone to mental health treatment while they await trial. Jeanette
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Columbia/Boone County chapter of Crimestoppers typically offers rewards in cases involving warrants and drugs. However, the organization has a role in helping solve the city’s unsolved homicides, too. Crimestoppers board president and former Boone County Sheriff’s Office deputy John Fields said the local chapter was founded in 1980. Fields estimates the
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) In less than a month, students across Missouri will be preparing to head back to the classroom for the 2025-2026 school year. As the new school year approaches in Missouri, state health officials are urging parents and guardians to check their child’s vaccination status, warning that falling immunization rates could lead to
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A new Missouri law will require drivers to pay the motor vehicle sales tax directly at the car dealership when purchasing a vehicle in a bid to reduce the number of expired temporary tags on the road. It will require drivers to pay their motor vehicle sales tax directly at the dealership
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Unpaid motor vehicle sales tax costs Missouri millions of dollars a year, according to the Missouri Department of Revenue. Between January 1, 2021, and July 23, 2024, the Department of Revenue reported more than 113,000 delinquent accounts tied to temporary permits, adding up to nearly $145 million in unpaid fees. Each year,
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) St. Louis Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson will never forget May 16, 2025. It was a Friday around 3:15 p.m., meaning major roads in the city were already packed with traffic as rush hour approached. That would lead to even more issues down the road. It was the day an EF-3 tornado struck
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Finding missing people is getting easier thanks to an important piece of technology: Drones. Missouri Task Force 1 has 30 drones under its belt that are used throughout Boone County for various missions. Some of those missions include helping local law enforcement, such as the Boone County Sheriff’s Office. The department began
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia police are still searching for a man seen with 59-year-old George Showalter before he was killed at the Red Roof Inn in 1994. George Showalter, date unknown On April 17, 1994, Columbia Police responded to a call at the Red Roof Inn Motel near Interstate 70 and found Showalter facedown and
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia Police say advancements in DNA technology are helping in cold case investigations. Police are investigating 16 cold case homicides dating back to 1985. Three of these cases are over 30 years old. This includes the case of 59-year-old George Showalter, who was found dead inside a Red Roof Inn motel room
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) As of this week, Missouri leads the nation in the number of tornado warnings issued since Jan. 1, with 140 more warnings than normal. The severe weather season ramped up in March and has been relentless ever since. Missouri typically averages around 50 tornadoes (2000-2024 average), and we have had more than
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Missouri nursing homes rank among the worst in the country for the amount of care provided to residents, and ongoing staffing shortages may be adding to the problem and putting residents’ health and safety at risk. Federal guidelines from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services require skilled nursing facilities to provide
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MEXICO, Mo. (KMIZ) It’s been three years since the hospital in Mexico closed its doors, leaving Audrain County communities in limbo for immediate emergency care. “Having no hospital and no emergency room, it’s been devastating to this community, devastating to my practice,” said surgeon Dr. Joseph Corrado. “Before it was easy, you know, we had
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Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to remove the names of the victims in the shooting at the I-70/63 connector on the same day. The video has also been removed. COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Friday marks nine years since Garbrielle Rhodes Jr. was shot and killed in northeast Columbia. Police say they believe a shooting
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Wednesday marks eight years since two half-brothers were shot and killed in broad daylight along I-70 Drive N.W. and Garden Drive in Columbia. According to the Columbia Police Department, at 12:45 p.m. on Sunday, March 26, 2017, officers responded to northwest Columbia and found three men shot inside a white 2007 Audi
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Major players in the world of sports betting have spent millions of dollars to win votes for and against Amendment 2 on Missouri’s November ballot. Two groups are running ads on television to support and oppose the measure, which would legalize sports betting in the state and place a 10% tax on
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School threats, real or hoax, are taking a toll on some Mid-Missouri parents, students and teachers.
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) Mandatory jail time and what juries get instructed to consider could guide the first uses of a new state law on car chases with police, according to legal experts. Prosecutors can now consider charging people with aggravated fleeing a stop, dubbed Valentine’s Law by state lawmakers this session. People who drive
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Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat in the U.S. and Mid-Missouri, leaving communities to fight against a substance that is taking thousands of lives every year across the country.
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