Columbia man charged in Saturday morning downtown shooting

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man was charged with three felony counts Monday after he was accused in a Saturday shooting in downtown Columbia.

Charlie Sneed, 41, was charged with shooting at or from a vehicle at a person, building or car, first-degree assault and armed criminal action. He was being held at the Boone County Jail without bond and had an initial appearance is scheduled for 1 p.m. Monday.

According to the probable cause statement, a Columbia police officer was near South Seventh Street when the officer heard a single gunshot. The officer found a car stopped on East Broadway and conducted a traffic stop.

Two passengers in the stopped car, identified as J.S. and R.S. in court documents, said they had been shot at. A witness, identified as T.L. in court documents, said they saw Sneed crouched down near a stairwell holding a handgun.

T.L. pointed at Sneed near the East Broadway and Ninth Street intersection, identifying him as the gunman to the officer, the statement says. The officer identified Sneed by his Colorado driver's license photo.

The two people shot at told officers they were standing near the hood of a Chevrolet while it was parked in front of 812 E. Broadway with another person when they watched Sneed walk toward them, according to the statement.

Sneed allegedly asked for a lighter and began speaking with the victims. Sneed allegedly touched one of the victims and began saying slurs and curses at them. Sneed and one of the victims exchanged words. Both victims saw Sneed lift his shirt to display the handle of a handgun in his front pant pocket, according to court documents.

The victims began to drive away when they heard a single gunshot and saw Sneed crouched down near a brick structure, according to police. The probable cause statement says the victims saw Sneed pointing the gun at them and they could see the barrel of the gun.

The officer responding to the gunshot found one 9mm casing near a brick structure where Sneed was allegedly seen crouching near, according to court documents. The officer also found a Smith and Wesson 9mm handgun hidden in a flower pot at the bottom of the stairwell.

When Sneed was brought to the Columbia Police Department, officers noticed Sneed's front pocket was turned inside out and there was gunshot residue in his hands.

The probable cause statement says Sneed refused to follow booking procedures. Sneed refused to take off his shoes and physically resisted officers. Sneed tightened his leg muscles and locked his feet together to stop officers from removing his shoes.

Sneed told officers he knew he was a felon and knew he was not supposed to be around guns.

Columbia resident Justin Horton who lives in the downtown area says it is safe, but more officers in the area wouldn't hurt.

"During the night, like yesterday when I went out to get wings it was a bit sketchy," Horton said. "Like on nights where there aren't many people out, maybe it wouldn't be the worst idea to have a few police officers just here and there, make it feel a little more safe."

Mark Fitzgerald, Assistant Chief of Columbia Police's South Patrol said over email: "There have been several different iterations of a downtown unit specialty assignment at CPD over the last decade.  As our staffing picture improves I am sure we will discuss and consider bringing that unit back."

Fitzgerald also noted that keeping people safe citywide is the priority for the department. The department places a certain emphasis on downtown because at certain times of the day or certain days during the week, downtown typically has bigger crowds and the department spreads its resources as needed.

Fitzgerald stated Columbia Police currently has 32 open officer positions and 18 officers are in the midst of training. In total, the department is short 50 officers of their authorized strength.