COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A sex offender in Fulton was charged with a plethora of child sex crimes on Thursday. Leslie Lee Rodgers, 65, was charged with two counts of child enticement, seven counts of statutory sodomy of a victim younger than 12 years old, two counts of first-degree child molestation and two counts of tampering
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) An Auxvasse man was charged this week with two counts of second-degree statutory rape. Taylor Logan Brown, 25, is being held at the Callaway County Jail without bond. An initial court appearance is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Callaway County Courthouse. The probable cause statement says that the youth was
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The North Callaway Fire Protection District has a new, but familiar leader. Just one week after the previous fire chief was terminated, the district announced that Matthew Walton has taken over the fire chief position since Tuesday. Walton is no stranger to the department. He previously served for more than 20 years
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) President Donald Trump has approved two of Missouri’s major disaster declaration requests for severe storms, tornadoes and flooding that occurred March 14-15 and March 30-April 8, according to a Friday press release from the governor’s office. “This is important and very welcome news for the Missouri families and communities hit hard by
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) As of this week, Missouri leads the nation in the number of tornado warnings issued since Jan. 1, with 140 more warnings than normal. The severe weather season ramped up in March and has been relentless ever since. Missouri typically averages around 50 tornadoes (2000-2024 average), and we have had more than
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Mid-Missouri is taking steps toward curbing violence through collaborative efforts between local, state and federal agencies. The Violent Crime Abatement Team — which began on Jan. 1 — looks to discuss recent violent crimes and arrests in the area during monthly meetings at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Discussions include sharing information about
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A woman who was charged with murder in a fatal shooting at a Holts Summit apartment complex last month was indicted by a grand jury on Monday. Heather Smith, 37, of Holts Summit, was charged with second-degree murder, first-degree child endangerment, armed criminal action and three counts of unlawful use of a weapon. An arraignment is
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A man was charged after he allegedly assaulted a woman at a Kingdom City hotel on Feb. 28 and March 1. Richard Allen Tripp, 34, of New Bloomfield, was charged on Monday with first-degree domestic assault, two counts of third-degree domestic assault and one count of tampering with a victim in a
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The North Callaway Fire Protection District is down 13 people after the department’s board of directors voted to fire the current fire chief and another volunteer. “[The Board] was regrettably forced to vote to terminate the current fire chief and another volunteer after several months of attempts to address unacceptable behaviors,” the
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A new outdoor warning siren will be installed Monday in Pilot Grove, according to a press release from the Cooper County Emergency Management Agency. A siren last month failed to go off because of a power outage. “The new siren is operated by radio and operates off of batteries and has a
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A brief closure will occur Thursday morning for a westbound Highway 54 ramp at the north end of Fulton, according to a Wednesday press release from the Missouri Department of Transportation. The release says crews will be installing a sign. The closure is expected to last from 8-10 a.m., the release says.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Former Callaway County Sheriff Clay Chism has started a new role with the City of Auxvasse. The city on Wednesday shared on its social media that Chism started working as the city’s program administrator in February. “Please welcome Clay Chism as our newest addition to the City of Auxvasse. Clay started with
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CALLAWAY COUNTY, Mo. (KMIZ) A St. Ann woman was seriously injured after her minivan crashed Saturday afternoon. According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report, the 42-year-old woman was driving a 2009 Toyota Sienna on Interstate 70 at the 144.2 mile marker just after 2 p.m. The crash occurred when the vehicle went off
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Holts Summit man was charged on Friday with several felonies after he allegedly sexually assaulted a woman in 2023. Jeffrey Wilcox, 28, was charged with first-degree sodomy, armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon. He is being held at the Callaway County Jail without bond. A court date has
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FULTON, Mo. (KMIZ) Charges have been dropped against one of the three people accused in the deadly shooting of a Fulton teenager in July. Callaway County prosecutor Sandra Colhour confirmed Thursday that charges were dropped against Emmanuel Brown of Holts Summit. Colhour said in an email that the charges were dropped around April 15 due
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) More than 200 days after a suspect shot at two Callaway County deputies in October, both are now back on patrol. The sheriff’s office said in a social media post on Tuesday that Deputy Gardner Pottorff returned to patrol on Monday night, 204 days after he and Cpl. Justin Bax were shot
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CALLAWAY COUNTY, Mo. (KMIZ) A 16-year-old girl from O’Fallon, Missouri was injured when the UTV she was in flipped over in Callaway County Friday night. According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report, a 24-year-old man, of St. Louis was driving a 2023 Honda Pioneer 1000 on Wildwood Estate Drive at 9:45 p.m. The
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Portland, Missouri, man pleaded guilty to several charges related to firing guns at cars at a Callaway County campground. Wally Spencer, 48, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to unlawful use of a weapon, aggravated DWI and illegal gun possession in one case and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon and
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Callaway County woman accused of shooting and killing a woman at an apartment complex earlier this month is out on bond. Heather M. Smith, 37, was charged with second-degree murder, child endangerment, armed criminal action and three counts of unlawful use of a weapon. Her bond was lowered to $150,000 on Monday
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A 17-year-old Fulton girl was seriously injured in a crash on Tuesday morning on Route O at Callaway County Road 155, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol report. The report says the girl was driving a 2003 Ford Escape westbound on Route O when it went off the right side of
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