Columbia man charged with manslaughter after fatal Paris Road crash

EDITOR'S NOTE: The crash victim's age has been corrected.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Prosecutors charged a 63-year-old Columbia man with evidence tampering and manslaughter after a woman was hit and killed by a vehicle Sunday night.

James M. Pittard III is charged with first-degree involuntary manslaughter, leaving the scene of a fatal crash and tampering with evidence in a felony case in connection with the crash that killed Christine Horn, 46, late Sunday in the 3300 block of Paris Road.

Police arrested Pittard during a traffic stop Wednesday night after identifying him as a person of interest, the Columbia Police Department said in a news release. The traffic stop led to separate charges of driving while intoxicated, tampering with evidence and not complying with the requirements of the ignition lock on his vehicle.

Police said Pittard was driving a Volkswagen Jetta that matched the one they were looking for in connection with the fatal crash.

CPD Chief Geoff Jones praised his department's quick work in arresting a suspect in the news release.

Pittard remained in the Boone County Jail on Thursday without bond. No hearings were listed in his two cases in online court records.

Records show Pittard has a DWI conviction from 2019.