COLUMBIA MO. A home in the 100 block of Sexton Road that caught fire about a year ago is now at the center of multiple city complaints surrounding trash and abandoned vehicles. The home — owned by Carlos Alvino Lee Lawson — has a dumpster and other items outside of it that city officials say
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia College announced in a Monday press release that its Board of Trustees have named Toby Arquette as its next president. Arquette will become the school’s 19th president on March 1, succeeding David Russell, who announced his retirement earlier this year. The release says Arquette is currently at St. Ambrose University in
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Columbia state representative on Monday prefiled a bill for the upcoming legislative session that aims to expand rules on dog-breeding facilities. Rep. David Tyson Smith (D-Columbia) prefiled the “Animal Care Facilities Act,” which would expand violations pertaining to commercial and noncommercial breeders. Provisions include requiring adequate food, water and housing for
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Minimum wage workers across Missouri will soon see a boost in their paychecks. In November 2024, voters approved Proposition A, a ballot measure designed to raise the state’s minimum wage and provide earned paid sick leave for certain workers. As part of that measure, Missouri’s minimum wage will increase from $13.75 to
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The national unemployment rate is at its highest point in nearly four years at 4.6% recorded last month, and hiring trends are slowing as thousands of college graduates prepare to enter the workforce. The U.S. unemployment rate has ticked up since hitting a 54-year low of 3.4% in April 2023, reflecting a
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Construction for Boone County Public Safety Childcare Center is on schedule to be completed in July 2026. The center cost $5 million, with the county providing half and the state providing the other half. The Boone County Commission held a meeting Tuesday afternoon to discuss the current status of the project. Officials
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Missouri state lawmaker is pursuing legislation aimed at limiting superintendent payouts and protecting taxpayers, building on a proposal originally put forward by Columbia Public Schools. State Rep. John Martin (R-Boone County) was in attendance for a November Columbia Board of Education meeting when he first heard that it was a legislative
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Editor’s note: A source error led to Smith’s name to be initially spelled incorrectly. The name has since been corrected. COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The woman at the center of a Columbia AMBER Alert on Thursday is now charged with three felonies. The Boone County Prosecutor’s Office charged 24-year-old Joy A. Smith with two counts of
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A convicted sex offender on Monday pleaded guilty to keeping artificially generated child pornography on his cellphone. Charles Hooton, 64, of Columbia, pleaded guilty to four counts of child porn possession and one count of failing to register as a sex offender. He was sentenced to seven years in prison. The probable
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Boone County dog breeder accused of animal abuse is facing a significant number of felony charges after she was indicted by a grand jury on Friday. Melissa Sanders, 26, of Columbia, is now charged with 29 counts of animal abuse. All of the counts are felonies. She was previously charged with
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Boone County Commission on Thursdays approved the finalized budget for the 2026 fiscal year. Including money being using from the American Rescue Plan Act, expenditures for the new fiscal year are expected to total $156 million. Officials say the budget will allow for pay raises for some county employees. Presiding Commissioner
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Central Missouri Humane Society announced in a Friday press release that it is halting its intake of cats because of “the presence of a contagious upper respiratory illness within the shelter.” CMHS will waive adoption fees for all cats through Friday, Dec. 26. “Reducing our feline population is one of the
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A man has been charged with a pair of felonies after authorities claim he stole $15,000 from an elderly woman in a cryptocurrency scam. Charles Burri, 29, of Columbia, was charged on Thursday in Boone County with financially exploiting an elderly person and stealing more than $750. A warrant was requested on
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Columbia Public Schools has determined how it will spend some of the $9 million it received from Boone County after a property-tax settlement with Ameren Missouri. The county reached a resolution earlier this year in a long-running dispute before the Missouri State Tax Commission. The agreement resolved litigation over property taxes owed
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Safety and a strong learning environment is a top priority for Columbia Public Schools’ new Eagle Bluffs Elementary. The district broke ground on the project in the spring of 2024 and remains on track to be completed by fall 2026. The new two-story, $36 million facility will span 76,500 square feet and
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A woman is in custody after a search was conducted by law enforcement after they issued an Amber Alert on Thursday afternoon. The alert was canceled at 4:42 p.m. Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop A spokesman Justin Ewing said troopers stopped the blue 2005 Lincoln Aviator and detained the woman. MSHP also
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A 20-year-old man was arrested in east Columbia on Wednesday after authorities claimed he pointed a gun at two minors last month. Lee Jones III, of Columbia, was charged on Thursday in Boone County with unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action. He is being held at the Boone County
Continue Reading COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A judge is considering to allow a dog breeder – who is charged with 18 counts of animal abuse – to have a bond. Melissa Sanders, 26, of Columbia, has been held at the Phelps County Jail without bond since she was charged last month in Boone County with three counts of
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A woman accused of murder in the death of an 8-month-old girl in 2021 has been charged again. Jennifer Johnson, 49, was charged with misdemeanor sexual abuse in Phelps County after she allegedly exposed herself to another inmate at the jail. She is currently being held without bond. She is charged with
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Tickets for flights from Columbia to Charlotte, N.C., will be available next week. Columbia Mayor Barbara Buffaloe said during a news conference at Columbia Regional Airport on Thursday that tickets for those flights will go on sale Monday. The American Airlines flights to Charlotte begin June 4. Last month, the airport announced
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