Appeal in Columbia murder case delays trial’s start

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The attorney for a Columbia man accused in taking part in a 2017 killing is appealing a judge's decision not to dismiss the case based on prosecutors allegedly violating his right to a speedy trial.

Judge Josh Devine rejected attorney Stephen Wyse's request on April 8 to dismiss the case against Jeffrey McWilliams. That appeal led to the cancelation of McWilliams' trial, which was set to begin on Tuesday.

Wyse filed a request for a speedy trial in May of 2021 which would have required the trial to start 120 days later since McWilliams was in jail without bond. The court still delayed McWilliams' trial and gave him the chance to post bond. Assistant prosecutor Nick Komoroski dropped then refiled the case in the fall to better organize the state's case.

Wyse argues that Judge Devine should not have been allowed to set a bond for McWilliams as a means to nullify his request for a speedy trial. He said the arrest and accusations were a substantial factor in the loss of McWilliams' family business, McLanks' Family Restaurant.

McWilliams is accused in the death of Augustus Roberts in Dec. 2017 in the Old Hawthorne neighborhood in east Columbia. Police said he and two other men robbed Roberts, a marijuana dealer taking part in a nationwide operation. Officers claim they found a pullover near the neighborhood with McWilliams' DNA on it.

The murder trial is tentatively set to take place in August, depending on how the appeal plays out.