Author: KMIZ

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

An appeals court in Missouri’s western district upheld the conviction of a Cole County man who is serving two life sentences after he was found guilty of raping women.

Francis H. Kempker, 55, was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences without parole for two rapes committed during spring 2016 at his Centertown shop, previous reporting shows.

He was convicted of first-degree rape in April 2024.

Kempker was accused of bailing women out of jail and then raping them.

He was also found guilty of drug possession in 2023.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman charged in a Benton County child’s death was deemed competent to stand trial again on Monday.

Kourtney Aumen, 26, of Lincoln, Missouri, is charged with first-degree murder, child abuse, two counts of armed criminal action, two counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and one count of first-degree assault. Her case was moved to Webster County last year.

The defense had argued in July that she should be in the custody of the Department of Mental Heath but a filing form Monday deemed she was competent. She was previously deemed competent in January 2025.

She and others were accused in the beating and killing of 4-year-old Jessica Mast in December 2020, previous reporting shows. Jessica Mast’s parents – Mary Mast and James Mast – previous pleaded guilty to a number of crimes in the case, previous reporting shows.

Another filing from the defense on Tuesday states that Aumen’s attorney has had issues communicating with her.

“Although the Court has found Ms. Aumen competent to proceed to trial, its order has not eliminated profound communication difficulties between her and counsel,” the filing states. “Communication problems have put counsel in the difficult position of trying to prepare a defense to the first-degree murder charge et al., without her assistance. Absent her assistance, it is also difficult to prepare for depositions of witnesses.”

Aumen is being held at the Benton County Jail. A hearing is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Friday.

Suggestions in Opposition to Plaintiffs Motion to Compel Compliance with Scheduling Order or in the Alternative Motion to Strike any Future Notice of DepositioDownload

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Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) 

Columbia Public Schools is asking the community to help determine which facility improvements should take priority as the district prepares its long-range facilities plan.

Tuesday marked the first of three community town hall meetings designed to gather feedback before the district decides where to invest its limited funding. District officials and representatives from DLR Group, which helped conduct the district’s facilities assessments, presented information about the condition of CPS buildings and the district’s priorities at Lange Middle School.

“Because of the budget restrictions, we really want to take care of everything, but we can’t because funding is limited so much. So what we’re doing is engaging community and students to figure out how we should prioritize,” CPS Chief Operations Officer Lazell Ofield told ABC 17 News.

After the presentation, attendees were divided into three groups for roundtable discussions with district members. The groups were asked to provide feedback on what should be prioritized as CPS considers future facility investments.

The district’s stated long-range facilities priorities are student safety and security, equitable facilities across the district, and an improved student learning experience.

Officials said early feedback from community and student discussions has focused on creating more equity among schools, improving building safety and providing more collaborative spaces where students can work in smaller groups.

The district’s facilities condition assessment found several buildings that need significant work.

At the elementary school level, 14 buildings were rated below average. Benton and Ridgeway were rated in poor condition and identified as needing immediate attention. Both are among the district’s oldest schools.

Twelve other elementary schools — Blue Ridge, Fairview, Grant, Midway Heights, Mill Creek, New Haven, Parkade, Rock Bridge, Russell Boulevard, Shepard Boulevard, Two Mile Prairie and West Boulevard — were rated in average condition but are expected to need work within the next five years.

The assessment also identified Jefferson Middle School as being in poor condition and in need of immediate attention. Oakland and West Middle Schools were rated in average condition but are expected to need work within the next five years. John Warner Middle School, the district’s newest middle school, received the highest condition score.

At the high school level, three buildings were rated below average. Hickman High School was rated in poor condition and identified as needing immediate attention, while Douglass and Rock Bridge high schools are expected to need work within the next five years.

The district also identified several immediate infrastructure needs, including roofing, flooring, plumbing, electrical and HVAC projects.

Hickman has about 26,000 square feet of immediate roofing needs, followed by Fairview with 55,000 square feet, Benton with 5,500 square feet and Oakland with 27,000 square feet.

Immediate plumbing needs include replacing failing water piping at West Boulevard, Jefferson Middle and Ridgeway, along with fire protection work at Jefferson Middle.

Electrical needs include panel replacements at Benton, Jefferson Middle and West Boulevard.

Several HVAC projects were also identified, including work at Mill Creek, West Boulevard and West Middle. District officials said HVAC is a particularly important consideration because building temperatures and air quality can affect students’ ability to stay engaged.

The district’s priorities for deciding where to spend limited money includes student safety and security, fixing critical building systems, providing equitable facilities across the district and reducing operating and maintenance costs.

Ofield said the district has already started work on one project identified through its long-range planning process: Updating security cameras across the district.

“We are actually actively updating those security cameras that was approved earlier this year in our long-range facilities planning. And so our security team are engaged with our vendors to make sure that all of our security cameras are in place and updated,” Ofield said.

The district has also been collecting feedback from students as part of the planning process.

Officials said the information gathered from the town halls, student feedback and facilities assessments will be brought to the Columbia Board of Education in November. The board will then use that information as it develops a plan for funding future projects.

Ofield said community participation will be important as the district determines which projects should come first.

“We need to hear from you. We want to hear from you. It’s our responsibility to our community to understand their expectation of us. And so we really want to be intentional about this master plan to make sure this is the right master plan for Columbia Public Schools and the City of Columbia.”

The next community town hall meeting is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Oct. 21 at Smithton Middle School.

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Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri Department of Transportation is looking to make safety enhancements to a busy Columbia intersection and roadway.

MoDOT showed plans for two intersections along College Avenue during an open-house meeting on Tuesday at 900 East Stadium Boulevard.

At the College Avenue and University Avenue intersection, the left turn signal would be changed from a permissive left to a protective left. At College Avenue and Rollins Street, MoDOT has proposed adding a westbound left turn lane along with upgrading the associated traffic signals.

“With the permissive left, you don’t know if the car is going to go or the pedestrians going to go,” said Patrick Hake, who is a MoDOT transportation project manager. “So by eliminating that conflict, we think that there’ll be a lot safer for the pedestrians to walk across there.”

A Pedestrian Safety Study published by the City of Columbia in November 2025 lists the College Avenue and University Avenue intersection and the College Avenue and Rollins Street intersection as the top-two intersections for pedestrian crashes from 2015-24.

Twelve pedestrian-involved crashes were reported at College Avenue and University Avenue, while six pedestrian-involved crashes were reported at the College Avenue and Rollins Street intersection during that time.

In June, Columbia Mayor Barbara Buffaloe was involved in a crash on College Avenue at University Avenue after another driver drove through a red light.

The enhancements along College Avenue fall into a larger project that includes safety enhancements to Paris Road near Route B and East Brown Station Road. The projects total cost adds up to $1.6 million , according to Hake. The money would come from MoDOT’s Vulnerable Road Users Fund.

With the stretch of roadway being crucial during the school year for motorists and students, Hake said stipulations will be put into place for any agreement made that road construction can not occur during the school year.

“Chances are they won’t work on Rollins until the following summer, so it’ll be ’28,” Hake said. “They could, since we’re only upgrading the signals to protective left at University and there’s no other sidewalk or widening, they could potentially have somebody come in and upgrade those signals, but it’ll be up to the contractor and who gets that.”

General sentiment from people attending a public input meeting for the projects Tuesday towards the proposed College Avenue enhancements was positive. Many people agreed it would make the road safer for those crossing and driving in the area.

The contract for the project will be awarded in June 2027 and work can start as early as July. MoDOT anticipates the work to be completed by December 2028.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

MU Health Care announced in a Tuesday press release that it is adding a new ambulance base to west Columbia.

The release says the new base will be located near the Digestive Health Center at 101 South Fairview Road to bring “emergency medical services closer to a high-volume call area.” It will operate from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Friday “with plans to expand service in the future,” the release says.

Other bases are located in Columbia at located at Keene Street, Business Loop 70 West, University Hospital and 1000 W. Nifong Blvd. There is also one location in Ashland, the release says.

“This new ambulance base is an investment in the health and safety of our community,” said Senior Director of Emergency Services Josh Creamer said in the release. “By positioning our teams closer to where they’re needed, we can respond more quickly when every minute matters. It’s another way we’re delivering on our commitment to save and improve lives for the people we serve.”

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man was sentenced on Friday to 90 years in state prison for a drive-by shooting that occurred last year in a Boone County neighborhood.

Kevin Buckner, 27, was found guilty on Aug. 5 by a Boone County jury on four counts of first-degree assault, three counts of armed criminal action, two counts of illegal gun possession and one count of resisting arrest. He is currently being held at the Boone County Jail.

Buckner was accused of shooting someone sitting in a car Santa Anna Drive and El Chapparal Avenue, previous reporting says. He was allegedly in possession of a “ghost gun” when he was detained, according to a press release from the Boone County prosecutor’s office.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Boone County Sheriff’s Department, the Columbia Police Department, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol. No one person could point the finger at Kevin Buckner and say, ‘he’s the one who shot’, but through community cooperation and significant interagency collaboration, we were able to get 12 jurors to agree that Mr. Buckner was guilty of these offenses,” Assistant Prosecutor Paul Wade is quoted in the release.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway announced on Tuesday that her office sent a letter to a downtown Columbia bar that was previously targeted by University of Missouri System President Mun Choi.

Hanaway issued a letter to Reign Bar – located on East Walnut Street between Eighth and Ninth streets – to address “nuisance conditions.”

“Since Reign Bar opened for business late last year, the area in its immediate vicinity has experienced a noticeable uptick in unruly activity that interferes with public safety, peace, and comfort in downtown Columbia,” the AG’s letter states. “In just the past several months, the corner of Ninth and Walnut Streets where Reign Bar operates has been the site of numerous disturbing events—by way of example only, this includes a large, violent fight and another violent incident involving gunfire, both of which occurred directly outside Reign Bar. Understandably, the public is alarmed about the conditions surrounding Reign Bar. The Attorney General’s Office is too.”

The letter says Reign Bar has 14 days to respond.

A number of incidents have occurred on East Walnut Street since July that caught attention of community members. Choi had previously taken aim at the business and had warned students to avoid the area.

In late July, a large street brawl resulted in seven arrests. About two weeks later, in August, shots were fired in the same area. In September, a man assaulted a security guard in the same area as well.

City of Columbia spokesman Christopher Ave previously told ABC 17 News that the area has been the site of early morning gatherings before Reign Bar opened.

Reign Bar opened in October 2025, according to business information filed with the Secretary of State’s Office.

In August 2025, Columbia Police Chief Jill Schlude had noted a “hot spot” for gun violence shifted from the 900 block of East Broadway in 2024 to the 800 block of Walnut Street in 2025, previous reporting shows. Multiple incidents were reported in the 700 and 800 blocks of East Walnut that spring and summer.

View Hanaway’s full letter below.

Reign-Bar-Nuisance-Letter-SignedDownload

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A third person was charged in a shooting that occurred on Aug. 2 in Columbia.

Charges appeared on Wednesday for Montrez Ricketts, 47, of Columbia, which included first-degree assault, two counts of armed criminal action and one count of unlawful use of a weapon. He is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. An arraignment was held on Tuesday afternoon.

Chase Ricketts, 19, was charged Friday with first-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action. He is also being held at the jail without bond.

Mechoal Lewis, 52, of Columbia, was charged a few days after the shooting with first-degree assault, three counts of armed criminal action, two counts of illegal gun possession and one count of unlawful use of a weapon. He was indicted by a grand jury on Sept. 11 and an arraignment was held on Monday. He is also being held at the jail without bond.

Chase Ricketts was riding in the back seat while Lewis drove the day of the shooting, according to a probable cause statement. Police arrested him last week after serving a search warrant at Lakewood Apartments. Montrez Ricketts is accused of also being in the car, heavily redacted court documents say.

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Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

It’s been nearly one year since a Stephens College student was shot and killed in downtown Columbia, and MU students differ on their feelings about warnings from the University of Missouri to avoid certain areas of downtown at night.

“Walking downtown at night, it can definitely vary based on the time of day,” said Aiden Howson-Lewis, a junior at MU. “I definitely see unhoused people around downtown no matter what. At night, I’m more aware.”

Howson-Lewis said he’s had a couple of negative interactions with homeless people that made him feel unsafe. One night, a person followed him down the street, and on a different night, he said another person ran after him yelling.

But those interactions don’t stop him from going downtown.

“If I’m going downtown, I prefer to be with a group, or I prefer to just make sure that if there’s like a girl in the group that I’m hanging out with, I’m walking with her if she’s going anywhere by herself,” Howson-Lewis said.

MU President Mun Choi is an advocate for an urban camping ordinance to reduce these interactions.

The downtown Columbia Community Improvement District, with the backing of nearly 80 businesses, asked the Columbia City Council to consider and research an urban camping ordinance that would outlaw sleeping in public. However, the council has not expressed interest in picking it up.

Choi has also publicly said that downtown is unsafe, especially in the area of East Walnut Street between Eighth and Tenth streets, which he calls the “danger zone.”

That area has been the scene of high-profile crimes. In late July, a large street brawl resulted in seven arrests. About two weeks later, in August, shots were fired in the same area. In September, a man assaulted a security guard in the same area as well.

Howson-Lewis said he doesn’t visit that area.

Raevynn Smith is a sophomore at MU who grew up nearby, and she said downtown crime is typical.

“It’s not too scary for me. It’s kind of just normal,” Smith said. “There’s nothing that really freaks me out about it besides the dark.”

When asked about the “danger zone,” she said avoiding an area won’t solve the problem, and that Columbia needs to focus on the homeless population.

“I think we have an issue here with our system when it comes to caring for unhoused people. I don’t see why adding to that fear of it will help them out any. It just makes it something to avoid rather than solve,” Smith said.

CID Executive Director Nickie Davis said she waited to submit the proposal until the Opportunity Campus, a homeless shelter at 1300 Bowling St., opened. Supporters hope unhoused people who are blocking the area in front of a downtown business will be referred to the Opportunity Campus.

MU sophomore Jocelyn Setley said she doesn’t go downtown often, but she doesn’t feel like she’s in danger.

“I’ve never felt super unsafe or anything. Obviously, there are people around, more homeless people around and stuff — but my interactions have always felt safe. I don’t know, I’ve never had to think twice about being super unsafe,” Setley said.

She said she has heard stories about shootings, but it’s not frequent enough to deter her from going downtown, especially since that’s not a place she goes often. Setley also said her friends don’t talk about feeling unsafe either.

Watch a special report on downtown crime Thursday on ABC 17 News at 6.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Warrenton Police Department arrested “multiple juveniles” on Monday after shots were fired at a gas station at Highway 47 and Interstate 70.

Lt. Jason Hanner of WPD told ABC 17 News that shots were fired at a Rocket gas station after youths met for a drug deal. Hanner did not say how many juveniles were detained.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office later shared on Facebook that a chase ensued around 2:34 p.m.

“The pursuit continued into a construction zone where the driver traveled on the shoulder of the roadway, drove between vehicles, and drove through orange construction cones blocking a new portion of Interstate 70 where construction work was underway,” the sheriff’s office wrote. “The Jeep eventually reached an unfinished section of roadway, became airborne, left the right side of the roadway, and became disabled.”

Two 17-year-old boys and a 14-year-old boy were eventually detained. No injuries were reported.

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