Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

An Uber driver in Columbia has been charged with a felony after he allegedly groped a customer on May 23.

Ajab Khan Watan-Dost was charged on Thursday with first-degree sexual abuse. Court filings show that he posted a $6,500 bond on May 30. An initial court appearance is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 2.

The probable cause statement says that Watan-Dost drove the victim to their destination when he allegedly turned to them and said “I like, I like.” The victim allegedly told police that Watan-Dost grabbed their head and pulled them toward him to put the victim’s face near his. Watan-Dost allegedly made contact with the victim’s face while groping them, the statement says.

The victim was able to get Watan-Dost’s license plate information and photo from his Uber profile, the statement says.

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Nia Hinson

EDITOR’S NOTE: The charge the jury convicted Spivey of has been corrected.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man was acquitted of murder but found guilty of having a weapon illegally Thursday after a four-day trial.

Kimo Spivey, 35, was charged with first-degree murder, illegal gun possession, two counts of unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action. He was accused of killing Melvin Hooker III outside of Plush Lounge in May 2023.

Jury deliberations began just after 10:30 a.m. Thursday, after closing arguments ended. Jurors came back with a verdict about six hours later, finding Spivey not guilty of murder and other counts and convicting him on a charge of unlawful possession of a weapon.

Spivey’s attorney, Joe Flees, told ABC 17 News after Thursday’s verdict he was pleased with the jurors decision.

“There’s no disputing that it’s tragic, but it wasn’t caused by Mr. Spivey. As we said throughout the trial, he was always acting in self-defense in that situation,” Flees said. “He wishes he never had a firearm in his possession that day, obviously, but he is not a killer as he was described in court.”

Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson said the prosecutor’s office cannot comment on the case until final disposition. A sentencing date has been set for Sept. 9.

Flees, had urged jurors to take into consideration the fact that Spivey was a victim himself. Flees said Hooker had threatened Spivey, saying “you can get it too.”

Flees highlighted Spivey’s statement that he wished he had left the nightclub the night of the deadly shooting during his testimony on Wednesday.

“He could’ve called the police. He knows that. He told you that,” Flees said. “He said he just wishes he would’ve went home. In that moment, he thought that he would assess the situation, that he defused that situation, and he was wrong. But it doesn’t make him guilty of these offenses.”

Flees also argued that video surveillance and zoomed-in screen shots from surveillance show Spivey retreating after the shooting to receive care after he had been shot. Flees also reminded jurors that many of the witnesses who took the stand throughout the trial have not been able to identify who fired the deadly shot.

Spivey testified that he was working as a manager at the nightclub at the time, and was notified of a disturbance in the parking lot that involved guns. He claims he went to check on one of the security guards, who he has heard had been “jumped on” by Hooker.

Throughout the trial, the prosecution has emphasized Spivey’s previous felony convictions. That argument did not change during closing arguments on Thursday.

During cross-examination on Wednesday, Spivey told prosecutors he did not remember how many bullets were inside his gun that night, or where he purchased the gun. He also said he had never shot the gun before in his roughly five years of having it and claimed he only remembered shooting it twice the night of the shooting.

A Columbia Police Department investigator said four shell casings were found. Assistant Boone County Prosecutor Tony Gonzalez asked jurors on Thursday to ask themselves if it’s reasonable to believe a person with that history can be trusted. He said Spivey changed his testimony multiple times.

Gonzalez also pushed back against the defense’s claims that Spivey was a victim. Gonzalez called Spivey, along with two other men charged in the case, the “initial aggressors” because they allegedly approached Hooker with guns first.

“How does anybody know he’s anybody but a person that’s carrying a weapon with a 40 shot extension? Gonzalez said. “That’s just to me, and to any reasonable person, it’s a person walking through a lot with a loaded gun extended.”

Gonzalez also said that while felons have a right to protect themselves, it has to be within reason. He also said Spivey should never have inserted himself into the situation.

Columbia man Samuel Moss Jr. pleaded guilty in April 2024 to unlawful use of a weapon and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Justin Lamar Simpson, 42, was charged with second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon, two counts of armed criminal action and illegal gun possession. Gonzalez told ABC 17 News he was not in police custody as of Wednesday.

While Flees argued that evidence could not depict exactly who fired the deadly shot, Gonzalez argued that Moss, Spivey and Simpson acted together in killing Hooker.

Flees also said the shooting happened within seconds of the group of people arguing, indicating there was no time for Spivey to conspire with the other suspects to kill Hooker. Gonzalez pushed back against this, saying the law doesn’t define how much time a person has to decide to shoot.

The defense also said drugs were found in Hooker’s system after an autopsy was completed. He said Hooker isn’t the lawful guy the prosecution is trying to make him seem to be because he allegedly was hitting his girlfriend, which prompted Spivey and others to head toward the back of the parking lot and eventually resulted in the deadly shooting.

A security guard testified earlier in the week, claiming Hooker fought with him after he saw him hitting his girlfriend. Hooker’s girlfriend also testified and said she and Hooker had been fighting.

Another one of the defense’s witnesses– Bernesha Rogers– claimed during her testimony on Wednesday that Hooker had flirted with her earlier in the night and claimed she saw Hooker choke his girlfriend.

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Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

One of the seven men accused in the shooting death of Deshon Houston has requested a speedy trial two years after the killing.

Thursday marks the second anniversary of Houston’s death on Dove Drive in Columbia.

According to court documents, Ja’Shaun Barney made the request on May 29. A hearing is set for July 21 at 8:30 a.m. at the Boone County Courthouse.

Houston’s mother, Lacondance Houston, said she tries to focus on the love and good times the two of them had. But even with two years gone, the pain of losing her son still feels fresh, especially on the anniversary.

“The 26th of June 2023, today even though I didn’t get the call, but it still feels like the same day it happened,” Lacondance Houston said. “I miss you more than words can even express more than I can even say,”

According to court documents, men in two vehicles drove by a home on the 3200 block of Dove Drive and opened fire, shooting and killing Deshon.

Since his death, his mother says he had two kids on the way that have since been born making him dad of six.

She believes he would’ve been spending a day like today with all of them.

“He loved his kids, right now he would probably be at the swimming pool with his kids,” Lacondance Houston said. “His kids have to be without him and he loved his kids more than anything in the world,”

Seven men were charged in the case, and five have taken plea deals.

Last month, Jajuan Crockett, 23, of Columbia pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, tampering with a motor vehicle, two counts of stealing and one count of tampering with evidence. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

He is being held at South Central Correctional Center and is also serving a six-year sentence in an unrelated case.

The state said it agreed to the 10-year sentence because it could not confirm whether Crockett was in either vehicle used in the shooting, and he was not the shooter. However, prosecutors noted that he used his home as a meeting point and to dispose of evidence, according to court documents.

Court documents say Deazes Turner, Deljuan Turner and Alqueze Jones shot and killed Deshon Houston from a white 2017 Ford Explorer driven by Barney; while Bryton Allen also shot at Houston from an Acura MDX driven by Damarkus Williams.

All of the men originally had second-degree murder charges, which were later upgraded to first-degree murder.

Deljuan Turner pleaded guilty in November last year to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 21 years in prison. Jones, 21, pleaded guilty that same month to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 21 years in prison.

Allen, 22, pleaded guilty in July 2024 to second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon and was sentenced to 20 years. He was also sentenced to four years in prison in an unrelated case where he pleaded guilty to resisting arrest in 2021.

Deazes Turner, 22, pleaded guilty in April to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 21 years in prison.

Demarkus Williams is charged with first-degree murder, three counts of armed criminal action and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon. He has a status hearing set for 8:30 a.m. Monday at the Boone Courthouse.

“I wasn’t happy with the plea deals, but justice was serviced,” she said.

Lacondance Houston believes a trial and tougher sentences would have brought real justice.

“I’m gunna have to ensure life without him, so why should they not get life?” she said. “They wouldn’t have any idea what’s gonna happen totem if they went to trial, there ain’t no plea deal or nothing. You don’t know what you’re getting you go to trial you don’t know it has to be decided upon by the jury,”

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Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Editors Note: This article has been edited to correct a meeting time.

The University of Missouri Board of Curators is set to meet Thursday to approve its budget for the 2026 fiscal year.

The proposed budget includes $5.3 billion in funding across all four campuses: The University of Missouri Columbia, The University of Missouri Kansas City, Missouri S&T and the University of Missouri Saint Louis. However, university officials are facing $40 million in budget cuts and reallocations.

The UM Board of Curators listed funding challenges such as limited growth in state support past the 2026 fiscal year and navigating the federal funding landscape. However, the board sees the opportunity for strong student retention with first time college student enrollment up 46% for the 2025 school year.

Officials are also looking into performance-based salary increases.

Thursday’s meeting will begin at 8 a.m. in Saint Joseph, Missouri.

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Matthew Sanders

More and more people are saying they’ve experienced mental health issues, reports show.

Those who study mental illness have noted a marked increase since the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the groups that have seen the jump is youth.

The latest Boone County Community Services annual report shows a marked increase in youth needing mental health help since 2014. In Boone County, millions of dollars are spent yearly on programs to support kids needing counseling and other services.

But not all areas have those resources.

Are mental health support resources accessible in your area? Let us know by voting in the poll.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A bond issue that was approved by voters this past spring, but was not certified by the state auditor’s office, is expected to appear on the ballot again this November.

The Hallsville School District’s $6.5 million bond to complete the second part of a three-phase plan for construction to address the growing student population, security upgrades and a new baseball field was approved during the April 8 election.

However, the auditor’s office would not authorize the bond because the Boone County Clerk’s Office didn’t follow the newspaper publication requirements listed in state law, according to previous reporting.

School spokesperson Kari Yeagy wrote in an email to ABC 17 News that the school board did not take an official vote at its Monday night meeting; but it plans “to move forward with pre-construction and design and preparing to place the bond on the ballot in November.”

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Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. 

Boone County’s Community Services Department reported a nearly tenfold return on investment through its Children’s Services Fund, according to its 2024 annual report.

The annual report, which began in 2014, evaluates services funded by the 2012 voter-approved sales tax, which supports programs for Boone County youth ages 19 and younger. Between 2019-23, the Boone County Children’s Services Board invested in five key service areas — infant and early childhood, school-based programs, youth and family support, treatment, and community support and basic needs—yielding a lifetime return of $390 million. For every $1 spent, the report found a return of $9.51.

“The amazing nonprofit organizations that are out there in the community doing really hard work for children, youth and families, that’s what I’m most proud of,  is to really brag on that work in the programs that they’re able to offer, not just here in the city of Columbia, but also throughout the community,” Boone County Community Services Department Coordinator Joanne Nelson said. 

The report — prepared by Central Missouri Community Action and Partner for Better — uses a model from Washington University’s Institute of Public Policy. School-based programs saw the highest return—$42.36 per dollar—followed by community support ($10.04), youth and family support ($14.23), early childhood ($9.70), and treatment services ($4.19).

The report also outlined progress made across multiple indicators since the fund’s inception:

Child poverty among children younger than 6 years old declined from 24.3% in 2014 to 13.1% in 2022.

Teen birth rates dropped from 12.5 to 7.1 per 1,000 girls aged 15–19.

Food insecurity among children fell to 9.9% from 17.8%.

Juvenile law referrals and substantiated child abuse cases also decreased.

However, some areas showed concerning trends. Mental and behavioral health hospitalizations for youth rose from 92.9 to 114.8 per 10,000 people between 2014-20. Teen deaths from unintentional injuries, homicides and suicides also increased from 26.6 per 10,000 people in 2014 to 30.5 in 2020. 

“It’s a huge concern,” Nelson said when asked about the mental health concerns in Boone County. “You’ll see that everything that we have in this report revolves around mental health. You may ask? ‘Well, we provide food, you know, are diapers or, you know, essential items.’  But that’s going to help the mental health of families. You can’t be mentally healthy unless you have  a roof over your head or food in your belly.” 

Boone County has seen several moderate improvements in youth and family related outcomes over the past decade, according to the report.

The teen birth rate dropped significantly, from 12.5 per 1,000 in 2014 to 7.1 in 2022. Juvenile law violation referrals among youth ages 10-17 also declined slightly, from 37.1 to 36.2 per 1,000 during the same period. Additionally, the substantiated child abuse and neglect rate fell from 4.8 to 3 per 1,000 children.

The department said it has funded 10 school-based programs, which served more than 33,000 individuals in 2023 through teacher training, case management, mental health screenings and crisis intervention. One of the report’s key recommendations is to expand school-based mental health services and provide professional development for educators.

In response to growing concerns about youth violence, the county began funding six grassroots organizations dedicated to community safety and youth engagement.

“Youth having guns is an extremely difficult challenge,” said Victoria Woods, Boone County’s new Health and Justice Coordinator. “That’s why the board invested that money… to help with some of these issues that deal with youth violence.”

Woods’ position was created through an initiative spearheaded by Boone County Northern District Commissioner Janet Thompson. It serves as a liaison between agencies, including law enforcement, behavioral health providers and social service organizations.

“It’s so multifaceted,” Woods said. “Mental health plays a big part. Gun access plays a big part of it. And then also we have to consider ramifications from COVID and just the long-lasting impacts that can have on youth mental health. That’s still like we don’t even have a full understanding of.” 

Woods emphasized that the root causes of mental health challenges often begin with instability in housing, income and basic needs.

“We can’t have mental health without having a roof over our head,” Woods said. 

She also said conversations with local law enforcement have been encouraging.

“We’ve been able to have a really positive conversation with (Columbia Police) Chief (Jill) Schlude and (Boone County Sheriff’s Office) Capt. (Jenny) Atwell as the jail administrator,” Woods said. “They’re looking for ways to best serve the community with the resources they have.  But resources can be limited, whether that’s personnel time, whatever that looks like for them.” 

The Community Services Department oversees the allocation of the Children’s Services Fund and funds from domestic violence court fees. Its mission is to promote the health, well-being, and independence of Boone County residents.

The full report is available through the Boone County Community Services Department.

Boone County’s Community Services Department brought in $11.2 million in revenue in 2024, with the vast majority — $10.6 million — coming from the Children’s Services sales tax. Other sources included investment income ($503,880) and smaller contributions from the Domestic Violence Fund and miscellaneous donations.

Expenses totaled $14.35 million, with 79% ($11.3 million) going toward contracted services for children, families, and individuals. The rest covered salaries, professional services, and operational support.

In 2024, the county also reallocated $1.83 million in unused Community Health/Medical funds to the general revenue fund, following accounting best practices.

The Boone County Children’s Services Board has invested nearly $76 million locally during the past decade. Despite being required to keep 17% of the fund in reserves, the board has contracted more than it collected in tax revenue to strategically lower the fund balance, which peaked in 2017 at $16.5 million and is now down to around $9.1 million.

“I just think that taxpayers need to know that we hear them,” Nelson said. “It’s really important that we keep track of all the taxpayer dollars  that are being spent,  that we can account for all of that, and we can show all the good work that organizations are doing out there.” 

You can view the full report here:

2024-Annual-ReportDownload

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Keriana Gamboa

Columbia Mo. (KMIZ)

The Trader Joe’s store is expected to open sometime in 2025, but no official timeline has been released.

ABC 17 News spoke with construction crews at the site, who say progress is moving smoothly and they expect to finish work within the next few weeks. Benjamin Zeitzmann with Musick Construction says when the store opens, customers can expect the same Trader Joe’s experience they’re familiar with.

“I would say we are probably at like, 70%,  probably within our scope of work that we have to do. We’re pretty close. Maybe 75%, I would say.  So we’re getting close. We’re pretty close,” Zeitzmann said.

Burlington Coat Factory will also be located on North Stadium Boulevard, near the site of Columbia’s highly anticipated first Trader Joe’s.

According to the chain’s website, the Burlington location is set to open on July 25.

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Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Hot temperatures have arrived in Mid-Missouri, turning playground equipment into potential burn hazards for children.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, each year more than 200,000 children go to the emergency room with injuries from playground equipment.

Jefferson City Parks and Recreation says a young girl was injured at the Community Park last Wednesday after going down a metal slide. The slides have been closed until further notice.

“The playground and play features are built to industry safety standards; our staff have determined these two slide features will be closed off until further notice. We’ve reached out to the manufacturer for solutions that would allow us to reopen the feature sooner and are keeping an eye on surface temperatures,” JC Parks and Recreation said a statement

ABC 17 News tested a metal and plastic slide with a temperature gun at Cosmo Park in Columbia.

The plastic slide came in at 135 degrees, while the metal slide registered at 110 degrees.

While metal slides typically heat up faster, plastic can actually retain heat longer, especially in direct sunlight, making it just as dangerous.

Placement of equipment can also make a difference. ABC 17 News temperature gaged a tire that sat directly in the sun and one that was in the shade. We found the tire in the shade was 126 degrees while the tired under a tree in the shade came in at 99 degrees.

Both temperature checks were conducted around 12:30 p.m.

The CPSC warns of the risk of thermal burns from playground equipment, as metal and even plastic or rubber equipment can become hot enough to burn a child’s skin.

Mother Erika Tagliaferro was at Cosmo Park with her husband and daughter while on the road to St. Louis and quickly decided some equipment was off limits.

“I walked up and saw the metal slide and immediately it was a no,” Tagliaferro said.

She said when the warmer temperatures come around she keeps safety in mind when she dresses her daughter.

“If possible it is so hot so but tighter pants or tighter shorts even impose to the looser flowwy ones,” Tagliaferro added.

While clothing will help, many playgrounds lack proper shade.

The National Program For Playground Safety found in 2019 that 67% of playgrounds in the U.S. were fully exposed to the sun from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Mother Monica Jackson said more shade would allow her and her son to stay at the park longer.

“They have those sun shades those triangular ones that would make a big difference,” Jackson said.

The agency warns that any child of any age runs the risk of being burned by a hot source, but children 2 years old and younger are the most at risk. A young child’s skin is more susceptible to burning because it is thinner and more delicate.

What to watch out for:

Uncoated metal equipment, or metal equipment where the heat-reducing coating has rubbed off;

Slides, swings or other equipment that a child may sit on;

Dark-colored plastics and rubbers, especially the surfacing under and around the playground equipment;

Asphalt and concrete surfaces near playgrounds.

Safety tips:

Tap equipment first with back of your head for five seconds. If it’s too hot, it’s unsafe

Visit the park before peak sun hours

Wear breathable clothing and longer pants to protect the skin and closed-toe shoes.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A sidewalk closure that is expected to last through the end of August will begin next week in Columbia.

Crews on Monday will begin sidewalk repairs on the south side of the 1300 block of Bass Avenue, near the corner at College Avenue, according to a Wednesday press release from the city. The closure is expected to last through Aug. 25, the release says.

Pedestrian detours signs will be posted.

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