Author: KMIZ

Mitchell Kaminski

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A bench trial began Monday in Jefferson City over the language that would place Missouri’s new congressional map on the November ballot.

The trial is the latest in a series of lawsuits challenging the congressional map the General Assembly passed during a September 2025 special session, a map that could possibly eliminate U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s Kansas City–based 5th District and flip the seat to Republicans.

Sean Soendler Nicholson, a progressive political activist based in Kansas City who was hired to help defeat House Bill 1, testified as a witness for the plaintiffs. Nicholson’s testimony focused on specific wording that would appear on the ballot.

The state did not call any witnesses; instead focusing its case on the map itself. Attorneys for both sides scrutinized differences between the old and new district boundaries, including how cities and counties are divided under each plan.

Nicholson also argued historical statewide voting patterns show Democrats typically receive about 40% of the vote in statewide elections. Yet, he said, Democrats currently hold only about 25% of Missouri’s U.S. House seats, and the new map would reduce that share to roughly 12%.

Hoskins’ attorney Kathleen Hunker pushed back, arguing the case is not about the merits of the map itself, but whether the ballot summary written by the Secretary of State’s Office is accurate, fair and free of prejudice.

That issue has been at the center of the case since People Not Politicians and its director Richard von Glahn filed a lawsuit in November 2025. The plaintiffs allege the ballot language drafted by Secretary of State Denny Hoskins is unfair, misleading and not authorized under state law, arguing Missouri law does not give the secretary of state authority to draft summary statements for referendum measures.

Hoskins rejects that claim, citing Missouri statutes that require the secretary of state to prepare ballot summaries for all statewide measures, including referendums. In a brief filed with the court, Hoskins’ office argued that limiting that authority to initiative petitions would create what it calls an “absurd result,” leaving referendum measures without a legally required ballot title.

In earlier hearings, Hoskins’ legal team conceded two phrases in the original summary — describing the prior map as “gerrymandered” and saying it “protects incumbent politicians” — were unfair and overly argumentative. Hoskins asked the court for permission to rewrite the ballot language, but Cole County Judge Brian Stumpe declined to approve that request outright, instead choosing to consider it as part of the trial.

Stumpe also denied a request from People Not Politicians to depose state elections officials, ruling the case should focus on the ballot language and map.

Despite conceding that the disputed phrases should be removed or rewritten, Hoskins maintains the remaining language accurately describes the central features of House Bill 1. His attorneys argue the new map is more compact than the 2022 plan, splits fewer counties and municipalities, and better reflects statewide voting patterns — factors they say are visible to voters and tied to constitutional redistricting requirements. The brief contends ballot summaries are not required to be exhaustive or free of positive attributes, only neutral and sufficient to give voters adequate notice of what the referendum would do.

After hearing arguments from both sides on Monday, Stumpe took the case under advisement. Hunker told ABC 17 News there is no set timeline for when a decision will be issued.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A bridge replacement will begin on Feb. 18 on Interstate 70 in Montgomery County, according to a Monday press release from the Missouri Department of Transportation.

The release says the project will replace the bridge with a wider bridge and update the interchange layout.

One Wednesday, Feb. 18, the Route E/Y interchange bridge over Interstate 70 will close. There will be no north-south access across the interstate that day, but all interchange ramps will be open. Detour signs will be posted and include:

Route E (eastbound/westbound): Use the Northwest Service Road to the Route F interchange at High Hill (west) or the Routes A/B interchange, near Pendleton (east).

Route Y (eastbound): Take Veteran’s Memorial Parkway to the Route A/B interchange

Route Y (westbound): Travel west on Route Y to Route Y Spur/Fleahman Road, crossing to the north side of I-70, then turn left onto the Northwest Service Road to reach the Route F Interchange.

Traffic will also be rerouted for 24 hours beginning 8 a.m. Monday, Feb. 23 to remove the bridge.

Additional traffic impacts include reducing I-70 to one lane each way, eliminating access to interchange ramps to outer service road, a closure at Routes E/Y and local traffic needing to use Route F to access I-70, the release says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was accused of assaulting a woman in September in Audrain County was sentenced to probation on Monday, according to an email from Prosecutor Jacob Shellabarger.

Lane Miles pleaded guilty to first-degree kidnapping and second-degree domestic assault. He was originally charged with first-degree burglary, first-degree kidnapping, second-degree assault and second-degree property damage, a misdemeanor. He was sentenced to five years of probation along with a 15-year suspended sentence.

“Should he violate any of the conditions of supervision the Court put in place, Lane Miles will serve a substantial prison sentence. This was consistent with the Victim’s wishes, as she told the Court today she supported the plea agreement,” Shellabarger said in a statement to ABC 17 News.

The probable cause statement says a witness saw Miles pull the victim out of a home in Mexico, Missouri, around 2 a.m. Sept. 28. Miles allegedly dragged the victim by her hair down the stairs of the home and pulled her into a car before leaving, the statement says.

The victim later knocked on the door of the home and was let back in before Miles kicked the door in and forced the woman, again, into the vehicle, the statement says.

Miles allegedly choked the victim at one point during the assault, previous reporting indicates.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Tanner Bridge Road bridge over the Moreau River will close later this month, according to a Monday press release from Cole County Public Works.

The closure will begin Monday, Feb. 23 between Friendship Road and Route B, the release says. Don Schnieders Excavating Company, Inc. was awarded the $2.1 Million contract by the Cole County Commission in January, the release says.

The project – which includes realigning and widening the bridge — is expected to be completed by November, according to the release.

The existing bridge was built in 1960 and is listed as “poor” in the Missouri Department of Transportation’s off-system bridge replacement and rehabilitation, according to the release.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who escaped from the Osage County Jail in October 2023 has been sentenced to probation.

Alex Stieffermann pleaded guilty on Feb. 4 in multiple cases to several crimes, including escaping confinement, second-degree assault, stealing a vehicle, first-degree tampering with a motor vehicle and causing damage to jail property. He was sentenced to probation along with a 15-year suspended sentence, court filings show.

Court documents in previous reporting say Stieffermann had ran away from the jail after he assaulted a jail officer and took his keys.

Stieffermann allegedly hit an officer “multiple times” and took his facility keys. Stieffermann made it to a kitchen area and hit another officer with a fire extinguisher, according to the statement. The officer was brought to an emergency room after suffering from a head injury, the statement says.

Stiefferman then escaped from the jail using the facility keys, but was later found in Linn, documents say.

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Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Police say PCP was present in the apartment where a man was fatally shot Saturday night in a senior apartment complex in central Columbia.

Officers also found cocaine in the shooting suspect’s apartment, according to court documents.

Michael D. Graham, 66, was charged with second-degree murder, illegal gun possession, armed criminal action, evidence tampering and two counts of drug possession. He remained in the Boone County Jail on Monday on no bond.

Police found a man who had been shot in the chest on Saturday in a bedroom of apartment 212 at Oak Towers. The victim, Vasshon Haywood, 48, died at a hospital. Officers found and detained Graham in the Oak Towers lobby.

A witness identified Graham as the shooter, according to a probable cause statement. The witness told police that an argument had preceded the shooting.

Police found the PCP in vials in the apartment where Haywood had been shot after the man who lives there gave them to officers, the statement says. They also found shell casings and a revolver. Police later confirmed the revolver was stolen.

The probable cause statement says Graham took evidence from the crime scene to his apartment, where the cocaine was found.

Several residents told ABC 17 News that shootings were uncommon for the building.

“This is our first time really hearing about what’s going on because we didn’t know what happened,” Eight-year-Oak Towers resident Patti Robinson said. “We just woke up out of our beds and surrounded by police.”

Randy Cole, the CEO of Columbia Housing Authority, who oversees the apartment, told ABC 17 News the event was suspected to be isolated to the apartment where the shooting took place, and the surrounding residents were not directly at risk.

“CHA properties are overwhelmingly safe, approximately 93% of resident households annually do not experience an enforcement action,” Cole said in a statement.

CHA data also found that of 450 safety calls for all residences in 2025, Oak Towers made up around 21% of calls.

Cole adds that resident applicants are screened. According to the CHA website, having violence or drug-related criminal activity in the past five years, outstanding debts and negative housing reports are things that could get an application denied.

According to the PC statement, Graham had prior convictions for drug violations in 1987 and 2017 and assault in 2009. Graham was also previously charged with a misdemeanor for DWI and resisting arrest in 2023.

Due to previous charges, it was illegal for Graham to have a gun at the time of the shooting.

“There is no indication that prior safety concerns or reports contributed to this incident,” Cole said.

Residents add that most safety concerns have come from non-residents loitering outside of the building or coming inside during the evenings.

“7:00 p.m., I’m in my apartment, I’m not coming out,” Robinson said. “You’ve got to lock your doors and everything because people are walking around, twisting your doorknobs and stuff, now, that’s not good.”

Residents also voiced concerns about the recent affordable housing on East Sexton Road, with residents reporting drivers speeding in the area and pedestrians blocking the roads.

“You got all these people in wheelchairs and walkers, we need to be more safe than that, they should provide more safety for us,” Robinson said.

Cole also tells ABC 17 News there are no plans to change operations or security at the apartment at this time. He adds that staff are aware of the concerns of non-residents and that CHA’s Safety Department was expanded by one person in 2024.

“CHA staff and safety personnel are on-site and interact with residents regularly and will continue to listen to resident concerns,” Cole said.

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Nia Hinson

MACON COUNTY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Macon teenager was seriously injured in a crash in Macon County Saturday afternoon.

According to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the crash occurred on Route DD just after 4 p.m. The report states the 17-year-old boy was driving a 1999 Ford Ranger west, when the truck traveled off the road. The teenager then overcorrected and the truck began sliding, before eventually flipping over.

The teenager was taken to University Hospital with serious injuries.

He was not wearing a seatbelt, according to the report.

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Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man who was detained by ICE for several months is back in the Netherlands.

Owen Ramsignh returned to the Netherlands– where he lived as a child– early Sunday morning. Ramsingh’s close friend Robert Olson told ABC 17 News that Ramsingh touched down at the Schiphol International Airport in Amsterdam at 8:30 a.m. local time.

Ramsingh was detained for drug charges from his youth while coming back to the U.S. after a trip to see his family in the Netherlands in September. He was transferred at least once during his detainment, and his deportation flight was pushed back multiple times, according to the Bring Owen Home Facebook page updates.

“Having him out and knowing he is safe is a huge weight off of all our shoulders. Seeing him smile and hearing him laugh is the best medicine,” Olson said over text. “These past 4.5 months have been really tough, mentally exhausting and full of worry. A roller coaster of emotions.”

Olson said Ramsingh’s wife, Diana, and his daughter left on a flight out of the Columbia airport at 3 p.m. on Sunday for the Netherlands.

Diana Ramsingh told ABC 17 News that she was feeling mixed emotions about seeing Owen.

“A lot of things. Excited, anxious (just knowing all the things we have to get done in a short time), a little overwhelmed, but most importantly, excited,” Ramsingh wrote.

Olson also said he plans to visit during the first week of March.

In December, a New Mexico judge ordered Ramsingh to be deported for life. ABC 17 News spoke with an immigration attorney shortly after that ruling, who said it’s typically a 20-year sentence, with the potential to lower the sentence to eight to 10 years.

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Euphenie Andre

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Residents from three Columbia mobile home parks publicly launched a tenants union Sunday, calling on their corporate landlord to negotiate over rising costs, safety concerns, and alleged retaliation.

Tenants from Richland Heights North, Richland Heights South, and Creekwood Estates announced the formation of Columbia Tenants Union Locals 1, 2, and 3 during a press conference and rally held at Creekwood Estates. The Columba Tenants Union represent 102 households and are uniting to issue collective demands to Regal Communities, the New York–based company that owns the properties.

Tenant leaders said they are demanding that Regal Communities come to the bargaining table in good faith with a democratically elected tenant bargaining team and immediately end what they describe as retaliatory actions against residents.

Organizers said residents began organizing after months of escalating rents, unexplained fees, unsafe living conditions, and what they describe as a lack of transparency under corporate ownership. Tenants said efforts to resolve these issues privately were unsuccessful, prompting them to go public.

Regal Communities lists its core values as outstanding service, integrity, a good reputation and affordable living but tenants arrgue their experience has been the opposite.

“So many of my neighbors are in a place where they are going to end up homeless if they continue to increase rent and continue to charge these bogus fees and continue to harass and attack them,” said tenant Logan Moore.

Several residents claim rent has steadily increased, along with additional fees they describe as unclear or unjustified. Some also allege they have not been given proper access to their current lease agreements.

“Extra fees or eviction if you did not comply,” one tenant, Bruce, said while addressing the crowd.

The frustration, tenants said, is not only with the company as a whole but also with specific leadership. Residents publicly called out Regal Communities President Josh Schulman and property manager Robyn Bealler.

The crowd repeatedly chanted, “Robyn Bealler, you can’t hide, we can see your greedy side.”

“A lot of us were getting harassed on a daily basis by the property manager who was coming to tell us that they were going to evict us if we didn’t fix whatever about our porch,” Moore said.

After sharing their concerns, tenants marched to the Creekwoods leasing office, where they hand-delivered a letter demanding direct negotiations with Regal Communities leadership. Among their demands are an immediate rent freeze and the right to collectively bargain.

“Rent is increasing again for some tenants with no access to the lease that we’re currently under,” another tenant said during the event.

The properties were once owned by Jack Overton, who died in 2009. His daughter, Kris Overton Remus, said her father cared for his tenants.

“He would be rolling over in his grave if he saw what the current owners are doing to the tenants,” Kris Overton Remus said. “He very much believed in affordable housing for everyone.

Speakers at the event included tenant leaders from each of the three CTU locals, Citywide Columbia Tenants Union representative Jack Dobbs, Empower Missouri’s Vee Sanchez, and Columbia Third Ward Councilwoman Jacque Sample.

Organizers called the launch a historic moment for tenant organizing in Columbia, saying it marks the first coordinated effort among multiple mobile home parks to collectively bargain with a corporate owner.

“I think the only way to make a change, the only way that anything ever happens is when the people start actually voicing their power as a collective. Nothing ever changes if we just keep going along and doing what these greedy corporations,” James Remus said.

The Columbia Tenants Union sad it plans to take its concerns to the Missouri State Capitol on February 17 as part of Empower Missouri’s annual Day of Action.

ABC 17 News reached out to Regal Communities.

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Nia Hinson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Michael Graham, 66, of Columbia, was arrested for the shooting death of another Columbia man Saturday night, according to a press release from the Columbia Police Department.

Graham is accused of shooting Vasshon Haywood, 48, at the Oak Towers Apartments, an affordable senior living building in Columbia.

Graham was arrested on suspicion of:

Second-degree murder

Armed criminal action

Unlawful use of a weapon

Stealing

Possession of a controlled substance

Tampering with physical evidence

Graham is being held in the Boone County Jail with no bond.

According to Columbia Police Department Lt. Anthony Bowne, police were called to the 700 block of North Garth Avenue near the Oak Towers apartment building around 9:20 p.m. Saturday night for a report of shots fired.

Police found Haywood with gunshot wounds. He was taken to a local hospital and later died from his injuries, according to the release.

Randy Cole, the CEO of Columbia Housing Authority, who oversees the apartment, told ABC 17 News the shooting was limited to a single unit and involved a conflict between two people.

Cole also said Graham is a resident of the apartment, and Haywood is not.

An ABC 17 News reporter on scene saw several CPD vehicles in the area and an ambulance leave the scene with its sirens on Saturday night.

The reporter went back to the scene Sunday afternoon, and several residents said the shooting happened on the second floor.

Check back for updates.

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