Month: June 2025

Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A complaint filed against University of Missouri head football coach Eli Drinkwitz has been thrown out due to a lack of commissioners on the Missouri Ethics Commission. 

The complaint filed by Anthony Willroth, of Hold CoMo Accountable, stemmed from an Oct. 22 appearance on the weekly radio show “Tiger Talk” in which Drinkwitz spotted Columbia mayoral candidate Blaire Murphy in the crowd and gave him an endorsement on air. Drinkwitz eventually donated $10,000 to the campaign.

Since Mizzou Sports Properties and Learfield Sports sponsor the show, Willroth cited a violation of Section 330.050 of the University of Missouri’s Collected Rules and Regulations.

Under Missouri statutes, all MEC investigations must be completed within 90 days. However, on June 18th,  the commission ruled that because there were not four commissioners able to consider the investigation within the statutory timeframe, the MEC could take no action on the complaint. 

Under Missouri statutes, all MEC investigations must be completed within 90 days. On Wednesday, June 18, the commission ruled it could not act on the complaint because fewer than four commissioners were available to consider the case within the required timeframe. Missouri law requires at least four commissioners for a necessary quorum. 

The complain against Drinkwitz wasn’t the only one from the April Boone County elections dismissed due to a lack of commissioners. On May 28, the MEC also ruled it could not act on a complaint against John Williams and the Citizens for a Better Columbia PAC filed by Hold Como Accountable for the same reason.

Gov. Mike Kehoe’s office told ABC 17 News that Kehoe entered office with an existing lack of quorum on the MEC, adding that the requirements for appointments are stringent, which can make finding qualified candidates who are interested in the position difficult. 

In response, Gov. Mike Kehoe asked the Missouri Republican and Democratic parties to work with their congressional district committees to submit eligible nominees to fill the current vacancies. According to Kehoe’s spokesperson, Gabby Picard, the office has received nominations from both parties and has already started the interview process to fill the positions.

The Missouri Democratic Party told ABC 17 News in an email that it submitted eight-to-10 names for the governor’s consideration, but added that they sent a similar list to former Gov. Mike Parson and were “perplexed when he suggested he was having trouble finding people willing to serve.” 

“Over $300 million in total was donated across every ballot campaign and candidate running for election in Missouri in 2024, mostly in amounts larger than $5,000. That’s a lot of money flowing, and Missouri deserves a strong ethics commission to provide oversight and enforce our campaign finance laws to ensure our elected officials are accountable to the public and not special interests,” MDP spokesperson Chelsea Rodriguez said. 

ABC 17 reached out to the Missouri GOP, but has yet to hear back. 

Under Missouri law,  the MEC is designed to operate independently, free from interference by the governor or any state agency.

The governor appoints all six commission members, but only from lists of nominees submitted by the state’s two major political parties. Members must be Missouri residents, registered voters for at least five years and must disclose their financial and political contributions before being appointed.

Each member serves a four-year term with no more than three members belonging to the same political party, and only one member can represent each congressional district. When a vacancy opens up, the same nomination process is followed. If party committees don’t submit names in time, the governor can make the appointment directly, still following the same qualifications.

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Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The fleet of B-2 Stealth Bombers that carried out airstrikes in Iran on Saturday has returned to American soil, landing Sunday afternoon at Whiteman Air Force Base in Johnson County, according to footage from CNN and ABC.

The base is the only one in the country that houses the nation’s stealth bomber fleet and is the sole operational base for the B-2.

Gen. Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed in an interview with ABC News that the mission was the second-longest B-2 mission ever flown. The longest mission on record occurred in March 2011 during Operation Odyssey Dawn, when B-2s flew nonstop for about 30 hours round trip from Whiteman Air Force Base to Libya.

The B-2 bomber remains a multi-role aircraft, capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions, according to the Air Force’s website.

Information from the Air Force says the aircraft was first publicly displayed in Nov. 22 1988, in Palmdale, California, and its first flight a year later on July 17, 1989.The first aircraft, Spirit of Missouri was delivered to Whiteman Air Force Base on Dec. 17 1993.

Since then, the fleet has been used in multiple combat operations like Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq and Yemen. According to the Air Force, the B-2 completed its first-ever combat deployment in support of Operation Iraqi freedom. It released more than 1.5 million pounds of munitions.

The B-2 reached full operational capability status in December 2002 and six years later on Feb. 1, 2009, the Air Force’s newest command, Air Force Global Strike Command, assumed responsibility for the B-2 from Air Combat Command.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A “handful” of students and staff from Columbia Public Schools attended a national speech and debate tournament in Des Moines, Iowa, where a hoax threat occurred, according to a district spokeswoman.

Spokesperson Michelle Baumstark wrote in a text message to ABC 17 News that fewer than 20 people from CPS were in Des Moines when an evacuation occurred. The event was held last week and the evacuation occurred on Thursday.

“It was a hold and secure and one area of the very large exhibition venue was evacuated. There was a person who appeared to be under the influence who was arrested,” Baumstark wrote. She also wrote that the hold-and-secure lasted for about 20 minutes.

Baumstark wrote that about 7,000 students from high schools and middle schools from around the country attend the event every year and that the event is held by a “third party.”

The National Speech and Debate Association on Thursday wrote on its website that  an unidentifiedattendee entered the stage during the National Speech and Debate Tournament’s Humorous Interpretation Finals, interrupting the round. The individual was subdued and removed from the premises by the actions of onsite law enforcement”

The organization wrote that no weapons were involved, but “the incident scared students and otherattendees present.” It also wrote on its social media that no one was injured.

Baumstark said that a several area high schools had students in attendance. ABC 17 News has reached out to the Jefferson City School District.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A portion of Providence Road in Columbia near Big Bear Boulevard will close on Tuesday as crews fix a portion of the road that “buckled” on Monday.

Crews began working to repair the buckle on Monday morning, according to a social media post from Columbia Public Works. The closure will begin at 10 a.m. Tuesday as crews pour concrete, a Monday afternoon release says. The closure will last about an hour, the release says.

Providence Road will be closed in both directions, with northbound traffic being detoured east onto Big Bear Boulevard, the release says. Southbound Providence will be closed.

The release says that drivers are encouraged to use alternate routes, such as Range Line Street and North Garth Avenue, to avoid delays, the release says.

The social media post from Columbia Public Works says that road buckles can occur during extended periods of hot weather, when heat causes pavement to expand.

Road buckles have been reported recently in Cape Girardeau and other parts of the country, including South Dakota, Colorado and Nebraska.

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