Choi calls on city leaders to ‘take action’ against downtown Columbia bar, accuses courts of ‘lenient’ sentencing
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
After a couple of high-profile incidents on East Walnut Street in downtown Columbia, University of Missouri System President Mun Choi is asking city leaders to take action against a downtown Columbia bar.
Emails from Choi, which were provided to ABC 17 News by an MU spokesman, date back to April 19, after video of a downtown fight was shared online. Choi had addressed the email to Mayor Barbara Buffaloe and City Manager De’Carlon Seewood. Choi had linked an April 11 fight on Walnut Street to an April 19 incident in Iowa City – the hometown of the University of Iowa.
Choi’s April 19 email demanded that the city hire more police officers and staff a downtown unit, while calling a portion of Walnut Street “a danger zone.” That email was sent two weeks after Police Chief Jill Schlude announced the planned downtown unit launch would be delayed because of staffing issues.
Buffaloe had responded in an email to Choi, indicating “I know that they had been in talks with the business owner, who you also see in the video breaking up the fight, about what was needed to improve that block's safety.”
Buffaloe also wrote in her April 20 response that “Besides this incident on the 11th, I had not heard of an incident happening in this block for months.
Choi sent emails to Seewood, Buffaloe, all City Council members and Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson on July 27, the day after a brawl occurred on Walnut and Ninth streets that led to seven people being arrested. At least one person was charged with a felony.
“I have lived here since ‘94 and I think this is the worst that I have seen it when it comes to crime,” Demetria Stephens told ABC 17 News.
Choi specifically named Reign Bar in a follow-up email on Aug. 9. Reign Bar opened in October 2025, according to business information filed with the Secretary of State’s Office.
“It happened again at Walnut and 9th Streets. We continue to experience violent fights and gunfire outside Reign Bar. How many warnings about this establishment do you need to hear before meaningful action is taken?” Choi wrote in one of the emails addressed to Buffaloe, Seewood and Ward 1 Councilwoman Valerie Carroll on Aug. 9.
“He [Choi] might want to be careful because if you're going to single out one bar, we need to look at the whole downtown district, because I know for a fact, years past recent time, of watching individuals entering bars on Broadway and I know they're underage,” Stephens said.
Similar wording was used by Choi in a July 27 email.
"It happened again. I am gravely concerned about what is happening in our city. Please provide more resources for police in downtown Columbia by prioritizing public safety over non-essential investments. A greater presence of police officers, technologies, moral support, and effective prosecution will send a strong message for deterrence," the July 27 email from Choi says. "Without it, we’ll face continued violence and some with more tragic consequences like the incident at Iowa City downtown on April 19, 2026 that ended in gunshots with 5 injured including 3 University of Iowa students."
“It’s just frustrating this stuff has been going on before we even opened and we get the blame,” Jerrion Nelson, general manager of Reign Bar, told ABC 17 News on Monday. “The big fight that happened, those are people that don’t come inside.”
Nelson has extensive experience in Columbia’s bar industry. His grandfather owned Lou’s Lounge in Columbia, and after playing college football, Nelson returned to the city and worked security at MyHouse for six years.
After spending more than half a decade working in and around Columbia’s bar scene, Nelson believes Reign Bar has been unfairly targeted by Choi. He said other bars have experienced similar issues that Choi has not addressed and that he believes those problems have been swept under the rug.
The biggest issue he says is not the bars or the business owners, but underage drinking and open containers.
“I literally walk outside after we close and clean up, and probably 15 bottles of liquor, like fifth bottles, are just outside from people. We got the police sitting across the street. They’re not even getting open container tickets or anything,” Nelson said. “CPD just needs to enforce the rules. I hate to be like that but we have to at this point, because it’s affecting everybody. It’s not just affecting one group of people. This is how I feed my family.”
No gunshots were heard in video of the July 26 incident that circulated on social media, and police have not said that gunshots were fired. Though felony charges were filed against a man accused of firing a gun on Aug. 9 at the same intersection.
“I implore you to take appropriate action to hold this establishment, and any other establishment contributing to these conditions, accountable. The recurring violence demonstrates that the owner is NOT taking adequate steps to maintain a safe environment,” Choi wrote in his Aug. 9 email.
Nelson says that Reign Bar takes steps to make sure it is a safe environment, which includes contracting security out of St. Louis.
“I believe that young man is doing a great job. The first night that he was open, myself and a best friend of mine, we went in there, and we spent about an hour-and-a-half in his bar,” Stephens said. “He has security. He is placing bracelets on individuals that are underage. So he's doing the work.”
The City of Columbia says it can only take action against a liquor license holder after an alleged violation, proper notice, and a hearing to determine whether the license holder failed to meet the requirements or standards outlined in city ordinance.
The city also said it is working with downtown bars to ensure they operate in compliance with city ordinances and codes.
In a statement to ABC 17 News, city spokesman Christopher Ave said no violations have been alleged against any businesses in the area, including Reign Bar, in connection with Sunday morning’s incident.
Ave said the incident occurred outside the property of any bar and that nearby officers heard gunshots and arrested a suspect shortly afterward. He added the area has been the site of early morning gatherings before Reign Bar opened.
"The area of this incident and an earlier fistfight has been the site of early-morning gatherings since before the Reign Bar opened for business," Ave wrote.
In August 2025, Columbia Police Chief Jill Schlude had noted a “hot spot” for gun violence shifted from the 900 block of East Broadway in 2024 to the 800 block of Walnut Street in 2025, previous reporting shows. Multiple incidents were reported in the 700 and 800 blocks of East Walnut that spring and summer.
Stephens spoke of enforcing loitering in the area.
“In all of those incidents and locations, they should be focusing on the loitering. If you're going to talk about individuals hanging out, fighting, whatever the case may be, let's talk about it. But let's not target,” Stephens said. “It's happening on the sidewalks. And what happens in the streets and the sidewalks belong to the city of Columbia.”
Choi also accused Johnson of giving “violent perpetrators a slap on the wrist” while including five links to local media reporting on sentences for various crime stories.
ABC 17 News has filed a request for additional emails following the July 26 downtown incident.
Check back for updates.
