Author: KMIZ

Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman charged with felony murder is still listed on the Boone County Jail roster on Friday evening, a day after she was given a bond.

Alexis Baumann, 18, of Hallsville, saw her bond reduced to $50,000 on Thursday and is eligible for home detention. She is charged with first-degree robbery, two counts of armed criminal action and one count of felony murder.

Baumann’s other co-defendants: Kobe Aust, 18, Joseph Crane, 18, and a juvenile are still being held without bond. Aust has another bond hearing on Tuesday.

Michael Ryan Burke was shot to death on Jan. 18 in the 1400 block of Ridgemont Court. Court documents allege Burke had used Facebook Marketplace to arrange to arrange a cellphone sale. In previous reporting Baumann allegedly told officers the juvenile suspect and Crane went into the home shot Burke, took his phone, and then the group sold it at a local ecoATM.

Court documents also place Baumann and Aust in the getaway car at the time of the shooting.

A former judge told ABC 17 News that deciding a bond is one of the most difficult decisions they make.

“You have to judge whether or not the defendant, he or she, is a threat to the community,” said Gary Oxenhandler, who is a retired Boone County Circuit Judge. “Then the other side of the the scale is the presumption that we’re all innocent until proven guilty.”

Oxenhandler said it’s unlikely Baumann’s bond decision would influence the decisions for her other co-defendants due to most judges not taking influence from decisions in cases that are not theirs.

“You can hardly compare the two people that are being held without bond,” he said. “Their circumstances could be entirely different from one another.”

Aust was determined on Wednesday to not be eligible for home detention. Court documents also revealed he provided officer’s the location of where the gun used by the juvenile suspect was hidden after the shooting.

“Someone may have had a a bigger part in what transpired and that might be something that gets considered when judges are looking at the case,” Cole County Prosecutor Locke Thompson said.

Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson explained other factors that a judge may take into consideration with a bond decision include family ties, criminal history, mental health, employment, a risk assessment and more.

Crane has his preliminary hearing set for March 5.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Construction crews will begin replacing the roof of Brookside Downtown at 219 South Ninth St. at 7 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 11.

The closure will require crews to close off a pair of roads and sidewalks, according to a Friday press release from the City of Columbia.

South Tenth Street between Elm and Locust streets, as well as Locust Street between south Tenth and Hitt streets will be closed through 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, the release says.

The east sidewalk of South Tenth Street and the south sidewalk of Locust Street in the aforementioned areas will also be closed during that period, the release says.

Detour signs will be post and “no parking” signs will be in place about 24 hours before work begins.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was accused of breaking into several women’s apartment in 2022 in south Columbia pleaded guilty to multiple crimes on Friday.

Guillermo Vasquez Hernandez, 35, of Columbia, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree burglary and two counts forgery. He will be sentenced on March 30.

He was previously charged with two counts of first-degree burglary, one count of second-degree burglary, two counts of forgery and a count of misdemeanor stealing, but was originally  charged with two counts of first-degree burglary and two counts of forgery.

According to court documents in previous reporting, Hernandez’s fingerprints have been connected to at least three cases of a man violating the privacy of multiple women.

Columbia police released the first statement asking for the community’s help in identifying a suspected prowler on Nov. 8, 2022. The victim’s ages ranged from 20-30 years old. Many of the incidents happened in south Columbia, with many occurring at apartments off of South Old 63.

He is currently being held at the Boone County Jail. Online records from the jail also show he is being held on an immigration detainer.

Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson said the plea agreement caps his possible sentencing up to 10 years.

Check back for updates.

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Ryan Shiner

FAYETTE, Mo. (KMIZ)

A fundraiser was held Friday in Fayette to help benefit those affected by an individualized supported living facility fire that killed three people on Jan. 27.

Springfield-based Hurts Donut used the back of Fayette High School for Friday’s fundraiser. The fundraiser saw strong support from the community.

Two of the deceased victims have been identified so far. Marcia Lyon, an employee as the facility, and Donnie Bittle were identified by their families as victims of the fire.

Lyon was a longtime mail carrier in the Thornbrook area. Residents from the area raised nearly $7,000 to help with funeral expenses for Lyons, according to Thornbrook HOA President Brooke Sydenstricker McCarty.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

One person was brought to a hospital on Friday after they fell through the ice at Cosmo-Bethel Lake.

Columbia firefighters responded to the park at 2:37 p.m. after two people fell through the ice while they were ice fishing.

A Columbia Fire Department spokesperson said one of the anglers fell through the ice and a second person ended up in the water while they tried to rescue them. The second person was able to escape to shore and other residents tossed a rope to the person who was still stuck in the ice, CFD said. Firefighters were able to rescue the fisherman and that person was brought to an area hospital by ambulance.

Ice skating had opened last week at Stephens Lake Park and ice fishing opened at Cosmo-Bethel Park after intense cold the previous weekend had led to area lakes freezing 4-inches deep.

However, the City of Columbia announced on Tuesday that it had closed ice skating and ice fishing at both lakes because of warming temperatures. Friday had a high of 51 degrees Fahrenheit.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A registered sex offender has been charged in Callaway County with several sex crimes.

Bradford Beck, 51, was charged on Thursday with four counts of child molestation, three counts of first-degree sodomy, three counts of first-degree rape and two counts of tampering with a victim in a felony prosecution. His address on Casenet is listed as Columbia, though the sex offender registry shows his address as Holts Summit.

Beck is in the Callaway County Jail without bond. An initial court appearance was scheduled for Friday morning.

The probable cause statement says one of the child victims told their mother on Tuesday they were raped by Beck at about four of five times from the end of December through the end of January. During the first assault, Beck allegedly gave the youth alcohol and marijuana before raping them, court documents say.

After one of the assaults, Beck allegedly told the child to not tell anyone because he could “be in jail for the rest of his life,” the statement says. He then accused that victim of “ruining his life,” after he was confronted by the victim’s mother, court documents say.

A second child victim came forward to law enforcement after they saw Beck was listed on the Callaway County Jail’s online roster on Wednesday. Beck allegedly started raping that victim in November and had threatened to hurt members of their family, while also bribing the child with gifts, the statement says.

Court records show Beck pleaded guilty on Sept. 28, 2015, to sexual misconduct involving a child younger than 15 years old and was sentenced to two years in prison.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

No injuries were reported on Thursday night after a fire was reported at an apartment building in Mexico, Missouri.

A Friday press release from the Mexico Public Safety Department says firefighters were called at 7:17 pm. to the 500 block of South Olive Street. First responders found linens burning in one of the apartments and quickly put it out, the release says.

There was “minimal damage” to the apartment, the release says.

Crews determined a resident fell asleep while they were smoking before the fire started, the release says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 43-year-old man from Dixon was seriously injured in a crash Thursday on Highway 133 in Pulaski County, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says the man’s 2003 Saturn L200 was heading northbound when it went off the right side of the road. The driver overcorrected and the car then when off the left side of the road, hit a tree and fence and caught fire, the report says.

The man was brought to Phelps Health by ambulance, according to the report. It is not known if he wore a seatbelt.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

One person is in custody and charged with multiple felonies after the Morgan County R-2 in Versailles went on a temporary lockdown on Thursday evening.

Superintendent Bryan Pettengill said in a statement that the campus was put on lockdown Thursday evening after a report of a person trying to bring a gun on school property.

“Law enforcement was already on site when the individual arrived and took the person into custody without incident,” Pettengill said in a statement.

He added that no students or staff were in danger. The lockdown was lifted after confirmation from law enforcement.

Dalton Sidebottom, 35, of Versailles, was charged with two counts of third-degree domestic assault, two counts of misdemeanor second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, one count of second-degree making a terroristic threat and one count of unlawful use of a weapon. He is being held at the Morgan County Jail without bond.

According to the probable cause statement, Sidebottom allegedly made threats to “shoot his family.” Sidebottom had allegedly routinely assaulted a female at his residence, including on Thursday, the statement says. The probable cause statement made a reference to someone coaching during an athletic event at the school district and that a caller was worried Sidebottom may hurt someone at the school.

Court documents say at least 10 students and several staff were at the building at the time of the lockdown.

A victim was at the school and met with law enforcement to discuss what happened, the statement says. Sidebottom allegedly made multiple threats to kill her and “nanny cams” at their residence had recorded multiple assaults that were later viewed by deputies.

The victim had also viewed Sidebottom’s laptop and he had allegedly been “researching bullets that would cause the most damage to the human body,” the statement says. Sidebottom allegedly made threats to “hunt down” the victim’s family and shoot them, the statement says.

Sidebottom’s truck was stopped by the high school’s main entrance and told law enforcement there was a gun in his vehicle’s floorboard, the statement says.

He then allegedly identified himself assaulting the victim in the “nanny cam” video while he was interviewed by law enforcement at the Morgan County Justice Center, the statement.

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Alison Patton

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Cole County Judge Joseph Shetler dismissed a lawsuit against Hawthorne Bank on Friday over a land auction.

An auction for a piece of land that several people have claimed was meant to become a county park.

Plaintiffs in the case claim to have a special interest in how the land is handled, according to court documents. Two of the plaintiffs, Mark Knapp and Gary Scheperle, were named in the Lawrence and Mary Renn Trust, which left 178 acres of land in Elston to Cole County.

The judge dismissed the case without prejudice on Friday, claiming the plaintiffs had a “lack of standing and a failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.”

“I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut,” Knapp told an ABC 17 News reporter after Shetler dismissed the case. “Just really disappointed.”

Plaintiffs argue that the land was left to Cole County to be turned into a park, but the administrator of the trust, Hawthorn Bank, misled the county commissioners in how much money was left in the trust to turn it into a park.

Plaintiffs asked the judge to remove Hawthorn Bank as an administrator and appoint a new one, and cancel the land auction scheduled for Saturday. However, with the judge’s decision, the auction will continue as normal.

Knapp said the trust requires whatever the county receives from the land to go toward either student scholarships or a charitable organization.

The bank filed a motion to dismiss the case on Thursday. The bank had argued that the group had no standing and that the two people who were named in the trust — Knapp and Gary Scheperle – had received their money and are no longer considered beneficiaries. The judge agreed with that in his judgement.

“Plaintiffs Mark Knapp and Gary Scheperle are no longer beneficiaries of the Renn Trust, they are not owed any further fiduciary duties by the Trustee, and they do not have standing to bring this lawsuit as former beneficiaries,” Shetler wrote in his decision.

In the motion to dismiss, Hawthorn Bank’s attorney Micheal Schmid, asked the judge for relief and for the plaintiffs to pay the bank’s attorney fees.

The auction starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at the VFW Post, located at 1003-105 Irwin Drive, Jefferson City. It will be sold in six different tracts.

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