Former Moberly police officer found guilty of murder

HUNTSVILLE, Mo. (KMIZ)

A judge has found a former Moberly police officer guilty in the murder of a woman who confronted him at his front door,

Judge Robert Koffman found David Heyde guilty of second-degree murder in the case of Baily Scott at the end of his bench trial Friday morning.

Koffman ruled that there was no evidence that Heyde acted in self-defence.

The bench trial got underway Thursday in Randolph County. Heyde was accused of shooting and killing Scott on his property last July.

Scott was found with a gunshot wound in her right torso outside Heyde's home on July 6, 2025.

Heyde told police he fired two shots at Scott, court documents say. He claimed self-defense, saying Scott hit him during an argument after she alleged he was “attempting to kill birds at the front of his property,” according to the probable cause statement.

Scott “had no obvious signs of trauma or injury to either of her hands," the statement says.

Heyde waived his right to testify, and his defense did not call on any new individuals to take the stand as the trial wrapped up Friday. The state argued in closing that the evidence did not support legal use of deadly force.

The state also pushed back on claims by Heyde that he was hit by Scott, noting that in several interviews, Heyde used different language to describe the encounter.

The defense argued that, regardless of the wording, Heyde had been consistent in interviews that there had been some sort of physical altercation.

The defense also claimed that Heyde had every reason to believe that he was in fear of his life, and that was the ultimate reason for Heyde's use of deadly force.