Month: August 2025

Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

State Sen. Mike Moon (R-Ash Grove), State Rep. Bryant Wolfin (R-Ste. Genevieve) and a Maries County man have filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Senate Bill 3.

The lawsuit — that was filed Thursday in Cole County — is asking a judge to declare Senate Bill 3 unconstitutional, specifically regarding the stadium subsidies for the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals.

The petition claims the bill is unconstitutional because it violates Missouri constitutional provisions with the grant of taxpayer funds to a private person, Missouri Special Law and claims the title was not clear and a change of original purpose.

“The title of this bill is taxation, and it includes things that don’t relate to taxation,” Attorney Bevis Schock said in a Thursday press conference. “There’s supposed to be only one subject, this bill has a lot of subjects: disaster relief, there’s a campaign finance provision.” 

The also lawsuit claims the bill allows elected officials to use campaign funds for personal use to pay attorneys to defend legal challenges brought against them related to the bill and that it allows some, but not all, counties to vote on the adoption of the tax credits for property tax relief.

“The appropriations described in the bill are a direct gift or bribe to the owners of the Chiefs and the Royals to stay in Missouri,” the lawsuit states.

“The stadium subsidies are a bribe paid to sports team owners to meet their extortion demand to stop them from leaving Missouri for Kansas,” Schock said in a news release. “The way the numbers workit appears the legislature and the governor are sticking taxpayers with most of the salary of Chiefs Quarterback Patrick Mahomes.”

Schock during the news conference compared Mahome’s salary with the predicted tax subsidies that teams could receive.

“He’s gotten $50 million a year. The subsidy looks like about $33 million a year. I think if you asked your average guy on the street or gal, ‘Hey you think that the taxpayer ought to be paying Mahomes? Or should the owner of the team be paying Mahomes since he’s gotten the profit when the team succeeds?,” Schock said.

The bill passed in the Missouri Senate by a vote of 19-13 during a special session. It was then passed by the Missouri House with a vote of 90-58.

Wolfin believes supporter of SB3 hid behind the need for disaster relief in Saint Louis at the time to support their own interests.

“The whole, headline of this special session was to try to reconvene, to try and get disaster relief for the Saint Louis area. The reality is that was just never true,” Wolfin said.

Lawmakers added the property tax freeze into the bill’s proposal to ensure its passing.

Gov. Mike Kehoe signed the bill into law on June 14.

The Show Me Sports Investment Act is aimed at keeping the two sports teams from moving to Kansas. The proposal would give the state’s professional sports teams access to state funding for stadium projects through new bonds, but only if certain requirements are met.

The project must cost at least $500 million and involve stadiums with more than 30,000 seats. The state could cover up to 50% of the total cost and eligible teams could also access a tax credit worth up to 10% of their investment.

Chiefs owner and CEO Clark Hunt said on Monday a final decision has not been made but said there is some urgency to make one.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 44-year-old woman from Lincoln, Missouri, was killed in a crash on Wednesday night in Benton County, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report.

The report says the crash occurred on Route H, south of Black Oak Church Road. A 2015 Ford F450 – driven by a 44-year-old Carrollton, Missouri, man — was heading northbound when it crossed the centerline and hit a 2013 Ford Edge – which was driven by the Lincoln woman — the report says.

The report says both vehicles went off the roadway and the Lincoln woman was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the Ford F450 had minor injuries and was brought to Bothwell Regional Health center, the report says.

A passenger in the Ford Edge – an 11-year-old girl from Lincoln – also suffered minor injuries and was brought to Bothwell Regional Health Center, the report says.

None of the people involved in the crash were wearing seatbelts and both vehicles were totaled, according to the report.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

An Indiana woman was seriously injured in a crash that occurred Wednesday night in the westbound lane of Interstate 44 in Pulaski County, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says the crash occurred when a 2018 Dodge Challenger – driven by the 53-year-old woman from Connorsville, Indiana – went off the left side of the road and the driver overcorrected. The vehicle then went off the right side of the road and overturned, the report says.

The woman was brought to Phelps Health by ambulance, the report says. She was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash, according to the report.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Boone County’s top prosecutor has announced that he plans on running for associate judge.

A Thursday press release from Roger Johnson says he plans on running for division 11’s associate judge in 2026.

“Serving as your elected prosecutor has been a great honor,” Johnson said in the release. “It has deepened my commitment to public safety and has shown me that the most profound impact on justice happens at the judge’s bench. I’m seeking to continue in a role with broader responsibility for ensuring fairness for everyone in Boone County.”  

He was elected to the prosecutor position in 2022 and served as an assistant prosecutor 12 years’ prior, the release says. He also served as an assistant attorney general and worked at Van Matre Law Firm, P.C., the release says.

The release says he lives outside Hallsville and is a graduate of the University of Missouri. He earned his law degree from Washington University in St. Louis, the release says.

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Moberly man is out on bond after he was charged with second-degree child molestation of a youth younger than 12 years old.

Kyle David Lee Tuggle posted a $40,000 bond on Thursday and has a court date scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Monday, Aug. 25 at the Randolph County Courthouse. A mugshot was not immediately available.

The probable cause statement says Tuggle stopped by the victim’s residence to get paid for yard work on Sunday, July 27. The guardian of the child temporarily left the residence. Upon returning, the guardian heard the child yelling to be let go, the statement says. The adult allegedly saw Tuggle holding the victim against their will, court documents say.

The child allegedly said they were touched in an inappropriate area and Tuggle allegedly admitted to the assault to the witness, the statement says.

The victim was examined at University Hospital and gave details of the assault to law enforcement on Wednesday.  

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri Department of Transportation will continue to monitor and fill a sinkhole that formed outside of a business on Business Loop 70 last week, across from Hickman High School.

Employees at Ashland Auto Sales told ABC 17 News on Thursday that a customer notified them about the hole last week. The business then called MoDOT crews, who initially put a metal plate over it and tried to fill it, according to information from the business and MoDOT.

MoDOT spokesperson Marcia Johnson told ABC 17 News that they were notified last Thursday about the sinkhole and crews filled it with rock and gravel on Wednesday. Crews checked again on Thursday and saw the gravel had “settled,” so it was filled again, Johnson said.

MoDOT crews plan to check the hole daily until it stops settling.

Click here to follow the original article.

Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia realtor is speaking out after finding people squatting in the homes she is trying to sell.

Wendy Swetz, a longtime Columbia realtor, said she’s more squatting incidents over the past month and a half, and not in just one part of town. She says the issue is damaging homes, turning potential buyers away and creating unsafe conditions.

She says what she has walked into has been alarming.

“They had suitcases. They were doing laundry in the sink. there were pill bottles. There were so many needles. You could tell they were smoking something in little ash trays, so they had damaged some of the flooring,” Swetz said.

In one case, Swetz claims people broke into a home through a window, leaving behind damage.

“They got into the house by breaking into the window, they were arrested. So, the rest of the homeless people came and just destroyed what we had packed up; and put into the shopping cart and just spread it out in the front yard,” She said.

But the situation didn’t end there. Just two nights later, Swetz said someone went back to clean the home and found someone else inside.

“Just two nights the cleaning lady went back to clean and there was another person in that house and they were showering,” Swetz added.

Another incident, Swetz said, happened when an agent was showing a home to a potential buyer.

“They were showing it to a family, and they walked in. They got in through the lock box and they walked in; and there was a man inside the house, and he was very high,” Swetz said.

When it comes to for-sale signs, Swetz said she may stop using them altogether, as they may act more like an invitation for squatters. The issue has made her routine of showing homes nerve-racking.

“If I’m showing property I am extremely heightened at this point going, ‘Is anyone in here?’ It’s time and the worry and the stress and the anxiety of actually thinking there could be a chance that there’s someone in these houses,” Swetz said.

To keep her and her agents safe, Swetz said she is taking extra security measures.

“Automatic lights, doing some sort of camera system, if there is an alarm set it every single time, that kind of thing,” she said.

Swetz acknowledges that this is a complicated issue with no simple fix, but she says it’s important to stand up for homeowners and the community — and she wants to be involved in finding a solution.

“To help people that are innocent that don’t want people in their houses that they pay for and that they you know we pay taxes obviously to keep crime down and have these problems hopefully figured out,” Swetz said. “What are we going to do? I don’t have a solution but I definitely want to be a part of it”

Director of the Room At The Inn John Trapp said the issue goes beyond vacant homes for sales.

“[We] don’t have enough shelter beds, so that’s part of it. We sometimes turn people away because we are full, and then there’s mental-health and substance-abuse issues that prevent people coming in,” Trapp said. “Some people had medical bills or an eviction and they just need a little hand up,”

Swetz said the people she has called the cops on were written trespassing citations. In Missouri, trespassing can be classified as a misdemeanor or felony, depending on the circumstances like causing damage or ignoring warnings. Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson said if someone enters a property without permission they can face a serious charge.

“At a minimum, it’s Trespassing in the First Degree, a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and/or a $500 fine. If the person damages the property or steals anything inside—which includes using utilities like water or electricity—the charge can be elevated to felony Burglary, which carries a sentence of up to seven years in prison. Any illegal drug possession would result in separate charges as well,” Johnson said in an email Thursday.

The Boone County Sheriff’s Office said the issue is mostly located in Columbia city limits, though the county occasionally does see issues.

In an email Thursday afternoon, the sheriff’s office said, “The homeless population does occasionally impact non-incorporated areas of the county, but is predominantly a Columbia issue. With that said, we haven’t really seen an uptick in BCSO calls for service for issues specific to homelessness.”

Click here to follow the original article.

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The battle over a derelict building in Sedalia took its next step on Thursday.

The City of Sedalia has sought the demolition of a building it says is in a “state of collapse.” The city filed a lawsuit last week seeking a court to approve the demolition of the building at 207 West Main St.  

The court denied the petition, but Circuit Judge Jeff Mittelhauser wrote in his ruling that the petition was denied because the court does not have the authority to make the initial decision to demolish the building. Mittelhauser wrote that a court could make a decision if a building is ordered to be demolished and the owner seeks to appeal.

The decision says ordinances within the city allow for the chief building official to determine if a building should be destroyed.

“It is the building inspector who has the authority to decide that emergency abatement is required. Section 67.440, RSMo, allows a city’s ordinances to provide that the appropriate building official may decide that emergency demolition is required. Sedalia Municipal Code Article XI, sec 10-457, repeats that it is the building official who has authority to order emergency demolition,” the judge’s decision says.

Chief Building Official Bryan Kopp had determined the building at 207 West Main St. needed to be demolished to “protect the public,” court documents say. The building is owned by Dana Melton and Travis Dixon.

The city had closed the sidewalk and street nearby the building recently to avoid residents from getting near the building. Court documents say the city worries about the state of the building and its effects on nearby buildings if it collapses.

25PT-CC00113Download

Click here to follow the original article.