New witness added in trial of Columbia man accused of killing wife in 2006
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Lawyers are interviewing witnesses to prepare for a jury trial against a Columbia man who is accused of killing his wife in 2006.
Keith Comfort, 41, is charged with second-degree murder. He is being held in the Boone County Jail on a $5 million bond.
Comfort in 2019 allegedly admitted to police that he killed his wife, Megan Shultz. An update on Comfort's case was given in the Boone County Court on Monday afternoon as lawyers prepare for a jury trial on June 12. The next hearing in this case is scheduled for May 30.
In open court Monday, the state said it has another witness that is yet to be interviewed. The witness allegedly saw an incident involving Comfort lawyers are calling "uncharged misconduct."
According to online court records, Comfort's lawyer, Kevin O'Brien, filed a motion in February to delay the trial after both sides received information about a June 5, 2006, arrest involving Shultz.
The addition of a witness from this incident pushed the court date back. This witness allegedly saw an incident where Shultz was violent with some people.
Comfort's attorney is working to find the arrest report from that incident. Legal experts previously speculated this could help him form a self-defense claim.
According to previous reporting, Comfort told police in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, that Shultz called him saying she was involved in a drug deal and she ripped someone off. Comfort then told police when he arrived at the apartment on the 1700 block of Amelia Street in Columbia, Shultz was frantic and swinging her arms.
Comfort allegedly told police he strangled Shultz and put her body in a garbage bag and put it in the dumpster at the apartment complex. Columbia police and landfill staff said they found Shultz's remains following a search that fall.
