Top Stories Archives

Boone County Commission passes $4.6 million contract for gravel road pavement

June 30, 2026 8:18 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Boone County Commission on Tuesday passed a multi-million-dollar contract for gravel road pavement throughout the county. The commission unanimously approved a $4.62 million purchase order with Capital Paving and Construction LLC. The total and locations, according to meeting documents, includes: LocationDollar AmountBoothe Lane (North) upgrade)$516,099.90Boothe Lane (South)/Brennen Drive/Finnegan Court upgrade$842,121.05Coats Lane

Columbia police call off search after missing man is found

June 30, 2026 7:57 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Columbia Police Department announced on a Tuesday evening social media post that it was looking for an at-risk man with dementia. Police were looking for John Linder, 76, of Columbia. He was last seen around 6:15 p.m. in the 200 block of North Stadium Boulevard while driving a dark gray 2025

Missouri Republicans back Supreme Court decision on state transgender sports bans

June 30, 2026 7:49 PM Melissa Houston

COLUMBIA, Mo. (Kmiz) Missouri leaders are getting ready to discuss further restrictions on transgender athletes following Tuesday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision. The higher court upheld the power of the states to ban transgender athletes from participating in certain sports, ruling that these restrictions do not interfere with Title IX regulations. Missouri state Rep. Brian Seitz

DESE sends A-F district grading framework to Kehoe for approval

June 30, 2026 7:08 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has sent its proposed “A-F” grading system for school districts to the governor’s office. A Tuesday release from DESE says this submission responds to an executive order signed in January. The release says DESE will give annual grades for districts, school and charter schools.

Community effort brings heat relief to vulnerable Mid-Missourians

June 30, 2026 6:35 PM Sutton Parker

COLUMBIA MO. (KMIZ) The Salvation Army hosted its annual fan drive on Thursday, giving away 190 free fans to the public. The group said the donation was a community effort, with partners at the Westlake ACE Hardware donating the fans to the Salvation Army for distribution. The drive comes as temperatures have started to rise

State sees increase in nursing turnover, vacancy rates

June 30, 2026 6:16 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Missouri saw an increase in the turnover and vacancy rates for nurses in 2025, according to data provided by the Missouri Hospital Association. A report shows the nursing turnover rate was at 18.9% in 2025, compared to 16.1% in 2024, bucking a four-year downward trend. The vacancy rate also increased 10.9% in

Osage Beach postpones Fourth of July celebration to July 11

June 30, 2026 5:11 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Osage Beach’s Independence Day celebration has been postponed to July 11, the city announced in a Tuesday afternoon press release. The city wrote that it has to reschedule its Heart of the Lake FreedomFest because “the City’s contracted pyrotechnics company was unable to fulfill its contractual obligation to provide the fireworks display

Sen. Schmitt wants constitutional amendment after SCOTUS ruling on birthright citizenship

June 30, 2026 1:49 PM Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) said Tuesday that he is filing legislation to amend the U.S. Constitution to “rein in” birthright citizenship. The decision comes after the Supreme Court rejected Donald Trump’s initiative to end birthright citizenship on Tuesday. “Under the Supreme Court’s erroneous interpretation, American citizenship is extended to anyone who

Man arrested for Monday morning stabbing in Mexico

June 30, 2026 9:45 AM Lucas Geisler

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Police in Mexico arrested a man for allegedly stabbing someone on Monday. Police Chief Brice Mesko said in a news release on Tuesday that Darrell Smith, 42, was taken into custody for allegedly stabbing a man in the 700 block of Singleton in Mexico. Smith is charged with second-degree assault and armed

Alert called off after Marshall woman found safe

June 30, 2026 11:36 AM Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Marshall woman with dementia who walked away from a nursing home amid extreme heat on Tuesday was found safe. Shirley L. Swift, 89, was last seen at Hartland Residential Care Center at about 9 a.m. Tuesday, according to an alert issued by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. She suffers from dementia.

Head-on crash in Camden County leaves three seriously injured

June 30, 2026 2:05 PM Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Three people suffered serious injuries in a head-on crash in Camden County on Monday night. According to the online crash report, a 39-year-old Springfield woman was driving a 2024 Jeep Wrangler eastbound on Highway 54 west of Route W at 10:15 p.m. Monday. The report states that the vehicle crossed the center

Bellwether turned red: Missouri’s shifting 200-year political history

June 30, 2026 11:41 AM Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) While Americans celebrate 250 years of freedom in July, Missouri will reach 205 years of being a state in August. When Missouri became a state in 1821, it was at the center of a war between America and itself: the Civil War. “Missouri played an important role very early on in the

Gasconade County man accused of killing man living in his garage, dumping body in river

June 30, 2026 11:22 AM Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Gasconade County man was charged last week after investigators accused him of killing a man who had been living in his garage in 2018. Daniel W. Russell was charged Thursday with first-degree murder, abandonment of a corpse and evidence tampering. The case had been sealed until this week. The Gasconade County

Judge keeps parts of Columbia Public Schools lawsuit over charter school

June 30, 2026 9:37 AM Lucas Geisler

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) – A Cole County judge will let some of Columbia Public Schools’ lawsuit over a new charter school in Boone County proceed. Judge Emily Fretwell decided on Monday to let CPS pursue claims against the state, Attorney General Catherine Hanaway and the State Board of Education over a 2024 law that permitted

Salvation Army in Columbia to give away box fans to beat summer heat

June 30, 2026 5:49 AM Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Salvation Army in Columbia will give away box fans Tuesday to help people beat the heat this summer. The fan giveaway will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Douglass Park in Columbia, with fans provided by the Westlake Ace Hardware Store. To get a fan, you must bring an

QUESTION OF THE DAY: Does the 14th Amendment guarantee birthright citizenship to all?

June 30, 2026 3:59 AM Matthew Sanders

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to release its decision in a case over whether the 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship any day. The constitutional amendment was ratified in the years after the Civil War to guarantee citizenship for freed slaves and their children. The section on birthright citizenship has long been interpreted to mean

Columbia’s Fire in the Sky set for Saturday night

June 29, 2026 10:28 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The 74th annual Fire in the Sky Celebration for Independence Day will be held at Stephens Lake Park on Saturday. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. with a performance by the Missouri Symphony on the trailer stage near the beach, according to a Monday press release from the city. Authority Cheer will

Community input shapes possible future for Columbia’s Shops at Sharp End

June 29, 2026 9:07 PM Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The future of the Shops at Sharp End remains uncertain as Columbia leaders and community members work to determine what comes next for the retail incubator after earlier public feedback exposed concerns about funding, sustainability and whether the project has fulfilled its mission. During a follow-up community discussion Monday, organizers shifted focus

ICE agents reported in Moniteau County after investigation at motel

June 29, 2026 8:36 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The California Missouri Police Department requested the help of Immigration and Customs Enforcement after a call was made over the weekend about someone allegedly trying to “self-deport,” an email from Police Chief Scott John. California police announced in a Sunday social media post “there were a few ICE agents from Kansas City

Camdenton man charged with arson, other felonies in Miller County

June 29, 2026 8:03 PM Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Camdenton man was charged with several felonies, including arson, on Monday after he allegedly tried to set a garage and tiny home on fire early Friday. Previn Tauer, 48, was charged in Miller County with two counts of second-degree burglary, two counts of second-degree arson and two counts of first-degree property