The Rematch: Ben Fuhriman and Julianne Young battle in repeat of District 30 B race that came down to four votes

KIFI on May 14, 2026

David Pace

ELECTION 2026 Coverage: Local News 8 is highlighting some of the most competitive, talked-about Legislative races in the region during the final run-up to the May 19 primary election.

BLACKFOOT AND SHELLEY, Idaho (KIFI) – Incumbent Ben Fuhriman is facing a challenge by former three-term legislator Julianne Young in a battle for District 30 Seat B with razor-thin margins.

The contest between the two candidates in 2024 required a recount and ultimately came down to four votes.

This year, the politicians are giving voters in Bingham and Butte counties another opportunity to choose between their differing styles and priorities.

When asked how they differ from one another, the two did not mince words.

Young said national groups rank her the most conservative candidate in this race.

“Look at national scorecards from groups whose expertise is to evaluate the conservative nature of a person’s record. I have a very strong conservative record with those scorecards, and my opponent has had to try to explain away those scorecards and discredit them,” said Young, candidate for Legislative District 30 Seat B.

Fuhriman said he is a defender of public education.

“95 percent of our students go to public schools. 95 percent of our kids need a good education in public schools because that’s where they go. My opponent consistently voted against funding for public education. I don’t know why,” said Fuhriman, candidate for Legislative District 30 Seat B.

For their take on the issues – including Medicaid expansion, water scarcity, budgets, illegal immigration and more – watch our full interviews with both candidates below.

Ben Fuhriman election interview.

Julianne Young election interview.

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2 Mid-Missouri men charged in separate federal child porn cases

KMIZ on May 14, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Two men from Mid-Missouri were charged on Wednesday in separate federal cases involving child sex abuse material.

In the first case, Lance Larkin, 35, of Boonville, was charged with receiving and possessing child pornography. The Missouri State Highway Patrol determined an illicit file was shared from the IP address of Larkin’s computer, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

Authorities served a search warrant, which led to the discovery of thousands of child sex abuse images and videos, the release says.

In a second case, Nathan Kent, 33, of Jefferson City, was charged with three counts of producing child pornography, two counts of distributing child porn and a count of child porn possession.

A press release from the DOJ says Kent used the social media application SnapChat to entice children to send him images and videos. Kent allegedly possessed more than 1,000 files of child sex abuse materials and had allegedly sent files to other people, the release says.  

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Severe storm knocks out power for thousands; restoration crews “working hard to restore power”

KIFI on May 14, 2026

Dylan Carder

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Thousands of East Idahoans are without power due to Wednesday’s severe thunderstorm. Rocky Mountain Power says restoration crews are”working hard to restore power” after high winds knocked down power lines across a broad section of the state.

Wind gusts around 60 to 70 miles per hour plowed through the area. Atomic City had the highest reported wind gust at 77 MPH.

At one point, more than 40 outages across Idaho had 7,000 customers without power late in the afternoon. By 6:30pm, the number of outages had been reduced to 22 affecting 3,296 customers.

The outages ranged from ares as far south as Malad and Preston. Some of the northern communities included Rexburg, Mud Lake, and Monteview. For the latest updates, you can view the outages on Rocky Mountain Power’s interactive map.

Idaho Power also reported multiple outages due to the thunderstorms that rolled through on Wednesday. As of 6:30pm, there were still 31 outages affecting 4,439 customers. Most of those were in the Magic and Treasure Valleys. The areas in eastern Idaho were mainly in Bingham and Power County, impacting areas in Aberdeen, American Falls, and Rockland. Updates for Idaho Power outages can be found in its interactive map.

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Audrain County man accused of firing gun at someone in vehicle

KMIZ on May 14, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Mexico, Missouri, man is facing several charges after he allegedly fired shots at someone who was sitting in a vehicle on Tuesday morning.

Darius Hoffman, 38, is charged with illegal gun possession, shooting at a vehicle, armed criminal action, misdemeanor illegally discharging a gun and misdemeanor second-degree property damage. He is being held at the Audrain County Jail without bond. A confined docket hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday.

Law enforcement wrote in the probable cause statement that Hoffman was seen on video in a Dodge Challenger in the 900 block of Harwood Street. He was allegedly seen pulling up to a Mercedes on Breckenridge Street and fired a pair of shots, the statement says. The driver of the Mercedes drove off and the Dodge followed, the statement says.

The victim claimed Hofffman shot at him multiple times and three bullet holes were seen on the Mercedes, police wrote.  The victim did not know why Hoffman fired at him, the statement says.

Hoffman allegedly denied firing shots when being interviewed by police, but did claim he was harassed by the victim, court documents say.

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Blackfoot family displaced after fire destroys garage, damages home

KIFI on May 14, 2026

News Team

BLACKFOOT, Idaho (KIFI) — A Blackfoot home was severely damaged, but the residents escaped without injury after a fast-moving fire gutted their garage Tuesday afternoon.

The Blackfoot Fire Department reports that the blaze began around 12:21 p.m. Fortunately, the department says a quick-thinking neighbor, who spotted the flames and alerted the residents. Thanks to that timely warning, everyone inside the home evacuated safely before emergency crews arrived.

As they arrived on the scene, firefighters found the attached garage completely engulfed in flames. Responding with multiple engines, the fire crews established an attack line to the garage to battle the main body of the fire. At the same time, a second crew entered through the front door to conduct a search and prevent the fire from spreading further into the home.

While the most severe structural damage was contained to the garage, the fire breached the kitchen, and the remainder of the residence sustained significant smoke and heat damage.

Firefighters gained the upper hand on the blaze by 1:04 p.m., containing damage mostly to the garage with some fire damage to the kitchen and smoke and heat damage to the rest of the home. At this time, there is no word on the estimated cost of damages.

The fire, which began on the northeast side of the garage, is still under investigation.

In the wake of the blaze, the surrounding community has responded to the resident’s time of need. According to a GoFundMe page shared on the Life In Blackfoot Facebook group, the family is unable to live in the house as a result of the fire and is trying to “figure things out” for their 4 children and great-grandchild.

As of Wednesday morning, community members have raised over $1500 for the fundraiser. For more information, click HERE.

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Trial for man accused of murder in 2024 shooting moved to June

KMIZ on May 14, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man who is charged with murder for his alleged role with a fatal 2024 shooting will go to trial next month.

Jordan Brantley, 20, is charged with first-degree assault, second-degree murder and armed criminal action. He is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond.

He was originally expected to go to trial in May, but on Tuesday the four-day trial was scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, June 23. He also has pre-trial conference scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, May 21; 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 26; and 1:30 p.m. Monday, June 15.

He is one of three people who were charged in the death of Trevon Ashcraft. Cordero Riley Jr. pleaded guilty last year to unlawful use of a weapon and second-degree assault and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Quanina Lambert pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and child endangerment in 2025. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

According to previous reporting, police allege Lambert was inside a home on Rice Road that was apparently targeted by a group of shooters who pulled up in an SUV. Lambert allegedly gave her gun to a man at the scene. Police found Ashcraft shot in the head and he later died at an area hospital.

Brantley was allegedly part of the group targeting the house and was seen on video wearing a black ski mask, police wrote in the probable cause statement. He was allegedly seen on video shooting down Boyd Lane during the shootout. Police believe he fired the fatal shot, previous reporting indicates.

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Boone County Clerk says district lines can’t be redrawn until Hoskins makes move on referendum petition

KMIZ on May 13, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Boone County Clerk Brianna Lennon claims district lines in Boone County can’t be redrawn until the Secretary of State’s Office makes a move on a referendum petition.

The Missouri Supreme Court handed down multiple rulings on Tuesday over the mid-decade redrawn federal House district maps within the state. Its rulings led to upholding the map, claiming petitioners did not prove the map “clearly and undoubtedly” violates Article 3 of the Missouri Constitution.

The ruling also claims that submitting a referendum petition did not automatically suspend the bill that created the new map, though it appeared additional legal battles could occur.

Lennon in her letter to Denny Hoskins’ office says that she cannot redraw the lines within Boone County, which would also update voter rolls.

Lennon cited in her letter:

“Because the secretary’s certification process under chapter 116 is ongoing and has not been finally determined, it is impossible to say as of this opinion whether the December 9 [2025] referendum petition filing was ‘legal, sufficient and timely’ and, therefore whether HB1 when into effect on December 11 or whether HB1 was referred to the people as of December 9 and can only go into effect when approve by a majority of the votes cast thereon.”

“As a result, I am caught in the untenable position of trying to predict when and how you will issue a determination about the sufficiency of the petition,” Lennon wrote to Hoskins. “Until that time, I have no actionable legal information as to what congressional district map is in effect so I will not be making any changes to the map that was in place prior to the enactment of HB1.”

The final certification date for the Aug. 4 election is May 26, with absentee voting for military voters beginning on June 19.

Boundaries within Boone County had changed with the new map, with the entirety of Columbia being in District 3 and other parts of the county being in the highly debated District 5.

View Lennon’s full letter below:

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Bill that would designate day for Eliot and Muriel Battle goes back to Senate

KMIZ on May 13, 2026

Steven Lambson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri House sent an amended bill for state designations back to the Senate on Wednesday.

One such designation would make June 28 each year “Eliot and Muriel Battle Day” in Missouri. The text of the amendment says people are “encouraged to participate in…events and activities” honoring Eliot Battle, the first Black faculty member at Hickman High School, and Muriel, the first Black principal in the Columbia Public School District.

“The couple worked as a team to ease racial tensions during the 1960s and have been recognized with schools…named in their honor,” the amendment says.

Battle High School in Columbia is named for Muriel Battle. The elementary School which sits adjacent to Battle High School was named in honor of Eliot Battle.

“It’s a lovely tribute to two pioneer educators in Columbia Public Schools,” CPS spokesperson Michelle Baumstark wrote in a statement to ABC 17 News. “[We are] grateful to Rep. [David] Tyson Smith for bringing this recognition forward at the state level.”

Senate Bill 1544’s text mostly lays out designations for bridges or roadways to honor military service members, law enforcement, first responders or other public servants. The bill also says if the Kansas City Chiefs relocate outside the state, the Chiefs would not be the official professional football team for Missouri.

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Keeping your pets safe: Local experts share tips for weathering your pet’s Reaction to Idaho Storms

KIFI on May 13, 2026

Kaelyn Blessinger

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – From ripping up furniture to running away in a fearful frenzy, thunderstorms are starting to roll in, which may cause distress in our furry friends.

When the howling winds and booming thunder move in, we aren’t taken by surprise, but experts say our animals cannot comprehend what this is, and that makes them very anxious. And that anxiety can be dangerous for their well-being.

“We have to be sure that we’re keeping them indoors, because a lot of times when they get scared, they will flee and run away. And a lot of pets go missing during storms,” Lead Veterinary Technician at Broadway Veterinary Clinic, Kylee Abel, stated.

According to local veterinarians, there is a way to keep your pet calm through these terrifying times.

If you know your pet will react poorly to the weather, you can bring them to your vet for some prescription anxiety medication that can help ease their stress.

There are also various calming vests available in stores or online that could give your pet the sensation of a hug, to help them feel more secure.

If neither of those is doable, it is recommended to keep them in a quiet room, far away from the sounds of the storm. You can put on some music, the TV, a sound machine, whatever you think they’d prefer. As a way to comfort them.

Why are dogs scared of thunder?

Many pets are afraid of loud noises; coupled with their sensitive hearing, physical discomfort from static electricity, and the inability to fully understand what is going on can trigger the “fight or flight” response.

Sensory Overload – Since animals have much more sensitive hearing than humans, the boom of thunder can be deafening and terrifying for them

Static Electricity – Static electricity builds up during storms, which can cause painful, tiny shocks to animals. This often leads them to hide in areas with low static, like bathtubs or toilets.

Barometric Pressure Changes – Pets can feel the pressure changes in the atmosphere, sending off signals to them that something dangerous is approaching

Unpredictable flashes – the bright lightning flashes are sudden and unexpected, which can be very scary for animals

Lack of understanding – Animals do not understand what the noise is or why there are flashing lights and howling winds. This makes thunderstorms terrifying and unknown for pets.

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2 dead after single-vehicle crash in Hermann

KMIZ on May 13, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Two people are dead after a single-vehicle crash occurred Tuesday in Hermann, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says a 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe – driven by a 52-year-old Hermann man – was facing southbound when it was found south of East 6th Street at a private property.

The vehicle went over an embankment, hit several trees and went into a creek before overturning several times, the report says. A passenger – a 65-year-old Hermann woman – was ejected from the vehicle, the report says. Both people were pronounced dead at the scene and were brought to the Gasconade County Coroner’s Office, the report says.

Neither person in the crash wore a seatbelt. The vehicle was totaled.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

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