Author: KMIZ

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man was charged with first-degree domestic assault on Monday after he allegedly assaulted a woman on June 30.

Christopher Rowden, 38, is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. An initial court appearance was held on Monday.

Court documents say that he assaulted the victim between 8:30-9:30 p.m. on June 30. The probable cause statement says that police were called to University Hospital and the victim allegedly told them that they were slapped and pushed by Rowden and that he drove them to the emergency room.

The victim had shoulder replacement surgery on July 10 because of the assault, the statement says. The victim allegedly told family initially that she fell, according to court documents.  The victim allegedly did not initially report the assault because they feared Rowden would become upset.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Moberly man who pleaded guilty last month to sodomy has now been charged with enticing a child.

Billy Vanbibber, 40, was charged on Monday with enticing a child younger than 15 years old. He is being held at the Randolph County Jail on a $100,000 bond. He pleaded guilty on June 11 to second-degree sodomy and has a sentencing hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13.

The probable cause statement in his new case says that he sent pornographic images of women to a minor and tried to meet with the child for intercourse. The victim gave police the phone number of the sender, which was linked to Vanbibber, the statement says.

Police searched Vanbibber’s home and found the phone that contained the messages, the statement says. Vanbibber claimed the messages were a prank and he didn’t know the victim’s age, the statement says.

In his other case, Vanbibber met the victim on social media in September 2024 and the victim believed they were meeting a woman, the probable cause statement says. Vanbibber allegedly kept himself hidden until the encounter occurred and the victim punched him when they realized he was a man, the statement says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was charged with statutory rape earlier this year after moving into a home with a teenager and her father is now charged with having child pornography.

Travis Kalchbrenner, 32, was charged on Saturday with possessing child porn and is being held at the Cole County Jail. He was charged earlier this year with first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, two counts of statutory rape, one count of first-degree sexual abuse and one count of fourth-degree child molestation.

He has a hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday, July 28 in his rape case.

Previous reporting indicates that the victim and her father brought Kalchbrenner from Florida to live with them in Russellville. Kalchbrenner allegedly admitted to multiple sexual assaults after law enforcement was called to the home in March, according to court documents in previous reporting.

The child’s father, Frederick Copping, 47, was also charged in the case with child abuse, first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, first-degree accessory to rape, first-degree accessory to sodomy, two counts of second-degree accessory to statutory rape, one count of first-degree accessory to sexual abuse and fourth-degree accessory to child molestation.

Copping is being held at the Cole County Jail without bond and had a hearing scheduled for Monday afternoon.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Mexico, Missouri, woman was charged with several child sex crimes after she allegedly sodomized and molested a child multiple times since 2021.

Kaila Browning was charged with five counts of statutory sodomy of a child younger than 12 years old and five counts of first-degree child molestation. A warrant was issued on Monday and no bond was set.

 Court documents say that the victim was interviewed at the Child Advocacy Center on May 7 and described several assaults while identifying various items.

Browning allegedly admitted to some of the assaults to law enforcement when she was interviewed.

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Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Moberly man charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of a 23-year-old woman told police he fired in self-defense.

Whether the legal system agrees could depend on whether and how David K. Heyde, 68, invokes the state’s self-defense laws.

Heyde, 68, shot and killed Bailey Scott on July 6. He was charged on Thursday.

Missouri remains one of several states with a “stand your ground” law, which removes the duty to retreat before using deadly force in self-defense. It’s unclear whether the law will play a role in Heyde’s case.

“Stand your ground is simply self-defense expect you don’t have to retreat,” Former prosecutor Bill Tackett said.

The law, enacted in 2017, allows a person to use deadly force if they reasonably believe their life is in danger, without needing to retreat. Deadly force is also permitted if a person believes they’re at risk of serious crimes such as murder, robbery, burglary, kidnapping or forcible sexual offenses.

“Any crime really, any confrontation that you you have the ability to retreat, under self-defense you have to do that, stand your ground says what it says you don’t have to retreat,” Tackett said.

However, the belief that a person was in danger must be held up in court.

“Would a normal person believe that they were in imminent threat of lethal force, if someones pointing a gun at you, if someones pulled a knife on you, but in this case you just don’t have that,” Tackett added.

Missouri also has a version of the “castle doctrine,” which allows people to use deadly force to protect themselves against intruders. The law extends protections to individuals who feel threatened in their home, vehicle, on private property or any place where they have a legal right to be.

Stand Your Ground is fairly similar to self-defense but has one key difference.

“Self-defense requires lethal threat and it has to be reasonable and you have to have no way to retreat,” Tackett added.

PC DAVID KIP HEYDEDownload

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Missouri is one of 28 states that have laws removing the duty to retreat before using force in self-defense. Puerto Rico also has this law.

A 2022 peer-reviewed study found that stand-your-ground laws are linked to increased homicide rates, amounting to hundreds of additional deaths per year. Researchers found the laws were associated with an 8% to 11% national increase in monthly rates of homicide and firearm-related homicide.

According to court documents, Heyde told investigators that Bailey Scott approached his home to confront him about feeding birds. Heyde said he answered the door with a gun in one hand, claiming he did not know the woman at the door.

He allegedly told police he asked Scott to leave and that she hit him in the face with her right hand. However, investigators noted they found no visible bruising or swelling on Heyde’s face.

Heyde told police he was “stunned” and reacted by firing two shots, ultimately shooting and killing Scott, according to the documents.

While there are laws in place, Tackett says choosing to retreat when possible is always the best option.

“When would you not retreat, if you had the ability to retreat that saves everybody’s lives, it saves everybody from being injured, it just strikes me as something you would do,” Tackett said.

Heyde’s first court appearance is scheduled for Monday afternoon in Randolph County.

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Marie Moyer

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A group made up of over 20 sheriffs from across the state, calling itself the Missouri Sheriffs’ Constitutional Firearms Alliance, introduced itself at a news conference Monday at the Missouri Capitol.

The group says it is focused on promoting gun safety and defending the Second Amendment.

“By creating the MSCFA, the state’s sheriffs are sending a clear message: the Constitutionis not negotiable,” MSCFA president and Douglass County Sheriff Chris Degase said in the press release.

According to the MSCFA’s website, the alliance’s mission is to “foster a culture of responsible gun ownership and constitutional literacy, ensuring Missourians can exercise their rights safely and responsibly.”

The MSCFA says it plans to be a resource for firearm safety and storage and to work with local sheriff’s offices and community groups to host safety training events. The group also plans to push against policies that infringe on the Second Amendment while also supporting gun safety legislation.

“We see it on the news every day, where people’s rights are taken from them, they try to unjustifiably seize firearms, they try to pass laws that restrict us,” MSCFA President Sheriff Chris Degase of Douglas County said. Degase confirmed that federal actions were an aspect of the group’s formation when asked.

“Our goal is to ensure laws respect responsible gun owners while targeting those who misuse firearms,” the MSCFA website says.

Press Release July 11 2025Download

Jenessa Keller, a gun owner and volunteer with the Missouri chapter of Moms Demand Action, praised the group’s commitment to gun safety.

“It’s clear that promoting responsible gun ownership and community safety go hand in hand to ensure our communities are safe from gun violence,” Keller said in a statement. “We welcome any opportunity to work with law enforcement leaders to protect Missouri families from gun violence.”

Osage County Sheriff Michael Bonham also said in a statement his office would be open to exploring firearm safety and awareness opportunities with the MSCFA.

“I fully support efforts that promote responsible firearm ownership and protect the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens, especially our Second Amendment rights,” Bonham said.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 22-year-old man was charged after a deadly crash in Mexico on Saturday morning.

Prosecutors have charged Joshua Frye, 22, of Mexico with DWI resulting in the death of two or more.

Court documents state police officers responded to the crash on Saturday at 6:39 a.m. in the 4800 block of South Clark Street. At the scene, officers found two cars with damage, a 2016 Kia Soul and a 2012 Chrysler.

Police said other emergency crews on the scene said Frye smelled of alcohol and that he allegedly told crews he was drinking before the crash.

Police identified the victims as Kristain Pritchett, 22, and Austin Terry, 27, both in the same car as Frye. Court documents state Pritchett was in the front passenger seat while Terry was in the cargo unit of the car. Mexico Public Safety said to ABC 17 News in an email that the cargo area referenced was the area behind the back seat of the Kia Soul.

According to court documents, police said from witness statements and physical evidence, investigators think Frye was traveling southbound on Clark when the car lost control on a slight curve and slid into the path of Elliot Kitson, 29, in the northbound lane.

Police also said “numerous” alcoholic beverage containers were found in the Kia.

Frye was taken to University Hospital, where he had surgery for his injuries.

Kitson was also taken to University Hospital with serious injuries. He was reported on Saturday to be in fair condition.

Prosecutors are asking for Frye to be held without bond.

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Jazsmin Halliburton

MOBERLY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The man accused of shooting a 23-year-old woman is set to make his first court appearance in the Randolph County Courthouse Monday afternoon.

Prosecutors charged David Kip Heyde, 68, with second-degree murder on Thursday after allegedly shooting Bailey Scott on July 6.

Court documents state that Moberly Police received a report of shots fired around 7:30 p.m. in the 900 block of East Logan Street on Sunday from Heyde.

Investigators said in court documents that Heyde told police he saw an unknown woman walking on the street a few hours before the shooting. He told troopers he saw her approach his house, but left. She later returned, Heyde allegedly told troopers, and he went to the porch with a .32-caliber Kel Tec handgun behind his back.

Heyde said he walked out the door and spoke with the woman, later identified by first responders as Scott, and described her as agitated and talking about him feeding and trying to kill birds outside his home, the probable cause statement says. Court documents state he told the investigators that he told her to leave and used his other hand without the gun to gesture for her to leave.

Heyde allegedly told troopers that Scott slapped him on the left side of his face and that he reacted by firing his gun twice at her. Investigators wrote that they did not see any marks of bruising or swelling on his face where he said he was hit. Scott did not have any signs of trauma or injury to her hands.

Heyde will be in the Randolph County courtroom at 1:30 p.m. Monday in front of Judge Garreth Cooksey.

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Matthew Sanders

President Donald Trump brought out his favorite economic policy tool again over the weekend.

Trump said he is imposing tariffs of 30% on Mexico and the European Union. They’re the latest two countries to get notice of tariffs that are set to start Aug. 1 — Trump sent out several letters to countries last week about his latest round.

Some have called Trump’s use of tariffs, and the threat of them, policy chaos. Others say he’s deftly using a policy tool to get better deals for the United States.

What do you think? Do you trust Trump on tariffs? Let us know by voting in the poll.

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