Jury trial scheduled in 2026 for woman accused in fatal Holts Summit shooting
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A jury trial has been scheduled for the spring for a woman charged with murder in a fatal shooting at a Holts Summit apartment complex in April.
Heather Smith, of Holts Summit, was charged with three counts of unlawful use of a weapon, a count of first-degree of endangering the welfare of a child, second-degree felony murder and armed criminal action. Her trial will be held in Boone County.
A pretrial conference has been scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20. The jury trial is set for 9 a.m. Friday, March 13 at the Boone County Courthouse.
Smith is accused of killing Kara Dills, 37. Court documents in previous reporting say the shooting started with an argument between Smith and Dills at Hunter Lane Apartments. The documents cite nine witnesses to the shooting.
Video surveillance allegedly showed Smith threatening witnesses with a pistol before the shooting. One witness allegedly tried to disarm her after she pointed the gun at several people, but was not successful.
Dills allegedly got a gun and pistol-whipped Smith on the forehead, documents say. The gun went off, grazing a man later identified as Thomas Jones, on his head, according to the probable cause statement. After Dills lowered her gun and started to walk away, Smith shot her in the stomach, the statement says. She later died.
Jones was later charged with fourth-degree assault, a misdemeanor, for failing to listen to deputies. He has a hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. Friday, Nov. 7.