Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Moberly woman has been charged after a child died last month in an accidental shooting.

Jo Timmons, 37, was charged on Thursday with five counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child. She is being held at the Randolph County Jail without bond. A court date has not been scheduled.

Randolph County Prosecutor Stephanie Luntsford said because one count resulted in the death of a child, Timmons faces a sentencing range of 10 years to life in prison, including the possibility of a 30-year sentence in the Missouri Department of Corrections, if found guilty. The remaining counts are Class D felonies, each punishable up to seven years in prison.

The probable cause statement says authorities were called on Jan. 18 for a report of an 11-year-old having a gunshot wound. The child later died from their injuries, law enforcement wrote. Previous reporting indicates a fifth-grade student from Moberly had died in a gun accident the same weekend.

The statement says a 12-year-old helped deputies find the handgun in a dresser. Timmons allegedly told deputies that she left three children – a 10-year-old and two 7-year-olds – alone while she went to collect a paycheck that day, the statement says.

She had allegedly received a phone call indicating a vehicle the children did not know had entered the driveway, the statement says. She then received a phone call minutes later from a girl claiming she shot someone, the heavily redacted court documents say.

Law enforcement took statements from the children, who also claimed an unknown vehicle entered the driveway, they hid in a bedroom and a handgun accidentally went off when a child grabbed the gun, the statement says.

One of the children claimed the safety for the gun was on, but they did not know there was a bullet loaded in the chamber, court documents say.

The probable cause statement also notes that “[REDACTED] were placed in a different home.” However, when asked if the children were all belonged to Timmons, Luntsford said she could not go into detail due to the nature of the case. 

“All I can really probably say at this time is that there either have been or were several children residing in this home,” Luntsdorsford said.  

Deputies noted poor living conditions for the children, including smell of feces and urine being persistent throughout the home, as well as various trash, including loose pills and used condoms, being found.

A cockroach-infested shotgun was also found on the wall of Timmons’ bedroom, the deputy wrote. Interviewers with witnesses also claimed the handgun was “not always kept secure,” court documents say.

Luntsford said the living conditions factored into the child endangerment charges. 

“All of us might have a different standard on what’s acceptable as how we should keep our house clean,” Luntsford said. “But if it rises above a level where it seems to be very unsanitary to the point that it is probably posing a danger to the child either because it’s very unhealthy or the situation in which they are living may be unsafe in some way, then we would look at charging endangering.” 

Luntsford added there are no other current suspects at this time. 

“My office has received information regarding this defendant. So we have addressed that,” Luntsford said. “I am uncertain at this time if there will be any further reports regarding  any other potential defendants.”

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Pilot Grove man was charged with multiple felonies after authorities claim he got a victim younger than 21 years old drunk and sexually assaulted them.

Kale Weber, 26, was charged in Cooper County with two counts of first-degree sodomy, one count of first-degree sexual abuse and misdemeanor giving alcohol to a minor. He is being held at the Cooper County Jail without bond and a court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says the victim called authorities from a Casey’s location on Sunday after they ran from Weber’s home. The victim claimed they were raped by Weber while the victim was drunk and eventually “blacked out,” the statement says. A sexual assault forensic examination report was taken at University Hospital.

A Cooper County deputy spoke with Weber, who allegedly admitted to parts of the assault, but not all of it, claiming he would “never cheat” on his wife, the statement says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man was charged with multiple felonies on Thursday after he was accused of using a hatchet to attack a Callaway County deputy on Wednesday morning.

Slade Lamont, 20, was charged with first-degree assault, misdemeanor resisting arrest, unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action. He is being held at the Callaway County Jail without bond and does not have a court date set.

The probable cause statement says deputies served a search warrant at a Callaway County residence on Wednesday morning and were let in the home by Lamont’s mother.

A deputy had allegedly told Lamont to “come here” and “stop” when they saw him and Lamont ran to his room, the statement says.

A deputy followed Lamont to the room and Lamont allegedly hit the deputy in his leg with a hatchet, the statement says. Multiple deputies tried to take Lamont to the ground, but he resisted, a deputy wrote in the statement. Law enforcement ended up using a stun gun to subdue him.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The reconstruction of a sidewalk ramp will require a sidewalk to be closed and a bus stop to be temporarily moved in Columbia, according to a Thursday press release from the city.

Contractors are reconstructing the sidewalk ramp at the corner of East Broadway and South Second Street, the release says. Work will begin at 7 a.m. Monday and is expected to be completed by 5 p.m. Wednesday.

The Go COMO Red Route bus stop at the intersection will be relocated 40 feet west of the location while work is going on, the release says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Applebee’s location near Stadium Boulevard in west Columbia has closed.

The corporation confirmed to ABC 17 News in a Thursday email that the location on Interstate 70 Drive Southwest closed for good on Wednesday.

“Our Applebee’s restaurant in Columbia, MO  (I-70 Drive SW) closed on Wednesday, February 18. We greatly appreciate our neighbors’ patronage for the past +30 years,” Scott Fischer, a company spokesman, said in a statement.

Applebee’s also has a location on East Broadway in Columbia and in Jefferson City on Missouri Boulevard.

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Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Boone County judge sentenced a Springfield man to nine years in prison for a December 2024 crash that killed a passenger in his vehicle.

Carl D. Simon pleaded guilty Tuesday to causing serious injury while fleeing police and first-degree involuntary manslaughter. Judge Stephanie Morrell sentenced him to nine years for aggravated fleeing and five years for manslaughter, with the sentences to be served concurrently.

Court records and sheriff’s office statements say a deputy tried to pull Simon over on Dec. 7, 2024, at Clark and Ballenger lanes. Simon took off, leading deputies on a chase before crashing into a tree on Hinkson Creek Road, east of Columbia.

A passenger, Aaron Harris, died in the crash. Court documents say Simon was speeding at the time.

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Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

City of Columbia and University of Missouri leaders on Thursday held their fourth public safety meeting since the university president called on Columbia to crack down on crime.

An ABC 17 News reporter saw University President Mun Choi, Boone County Presiding Commissioner Kip Kendrick, Fifth Ward Councilman Don Waterman and Columbia Police Department Deputy Chief Matt Stephens enter the meeting at the State Historical Society of Missouri. The public was not allowed inside the meeting room.

The meetings started after a deadly downtown Columbia shooting that killed a Stephens College student in September 2025.

In an ABC 17 News “Question of the Day,” about 79% of those who voted say they would like public safety meetings to be open. Some city leaders also told ABC 17 News that they’d like to see the public invited into the meetings.

Choi told an ABC 17 News reporter after the meeting that the closed nature is not because it’s secretive.

“For us to have that open discussion when we’re thinking about the possibilities, and for us to do that in an environment where we don’t have to be in front of the press,” Choi said.

He said the meeting was about the list of eleven actions that law enforcement across Boone County can take, including increased staffing between all agencies and concentrated patrols downtown during peak weekend hours.

Also on that list is to meet with U.S. Attorney Matt Price, and Choi said a representative from the Department of Justice was at Thursday’s meeting.

The Department of Justice was behind Operation Brightside, a federal warrant sweep throughout the city in November.

MU spokesperson Christopher Ave said he wasn’t invited to the meeting, but he was able to speak with university officials afterward.

“I don’t have any specifics on what was accomplished during the meeting, other than it was very productive, cooperative, collegial, those are the terms that I’ve heard,” Ave said.

He also addressed meeting transparency.

“Our leaders are working together, and they’re trying to be as productive and as efficient as possible,” Ave said. “When the time comes, when agreements have been made, when there are new enhancements to security that can be announced, they’ll be announced publicly.”

Ave said the group isn’t at that stage yet, and they are currently trying to brainstorm and collaborate.

Choi also met with Gov. Mike Kehoe in December to discuss crime in Columbia, but the meeting left out city officials.

Choi said there will be more closed meetings like this one in the coming months.

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Matthew Sanders

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Jefferson City Public Works Department shut down a portion of West High Street Thursday after what was initially reported as a pothole turned out to be a significant structural issue.

“It was not a pothole, it was indeed a hole in the structure,” said Molly Bryan, spokeswoman for the City of Jefferson. “There’s deteriorated concrete, and steel that fell through,”

The city closed the road around 11 p.m. for the safety of drivers and pedestrians and installed detour signs overnight. The damaged area has since been covered with a steel plate.

The road will remain closed until engineers complete a full structural assessment of the entire viaduct. The city expects to receive that report early next week.

“If they come back and say here’s the repairs that need to be made and it’s going to be anticipated X amount of dollars, we’ll give that to our leadership, our city council, to make the determination whether they want to make those repairs,” Bryan said.

City leaders will have to decide whether to spend potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars repairing the damaged section now or wait and focus on fully replacing the aging structure if grant funding comes through.

Last week, the city applied for a federal grant to replace the viaduct and construct a new connector bridge linking River Market to Deborah Cooper Park.

The viaduct replacement is estimated to cost approximately $16.9 million. The proposed connector bridge is projected at $7.5 million.

“The grant, the way it’s structured, is multi-modal transportation is favorable. So by having a vehicular bridge and then also a pedestrian bridge, it will score favorable in the grant selection process. We should hear back in June whether or not we receive that grant.”

Bryan said the city has been working out all the small details for this project for years.

“Currently there’s some land conveyance legislation with the state that we need some of their property to do the design. We’re about 95% of the design work, which is been almost $1 million,” she said.

The overall project was placed on hold last year due to rising cost estimates.

According to Bryan, the city last completed work on a portion of the viaduct in 2022, which cost around $100,000.

If the project does happen construction will begin in 2028.

City officials said public safety remains the top priority as they await the engineering assessment and determine next steps for the aging viaduct.

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Nia Hinson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Crime in northeast Columbia isn’t slowing down, according to one resident of Ward 3.

Demetria Stephens told the Columbia City Council on Monday night that crime in Columbia’s Ward 3 is urgent, and warned city leaders that if they didn’t take steps to intervene, it’s going to continue to get worse.

Stephens spoke during the public comment portion of Monday night’s meeting, claiming that a juvenile has been breaking into vehicles on the east side of town. She told the city that she fears if police aren’t able to get to the child first, “street justice” will..

Stephens said the continued crime in the area has given her anxiety, prompting her to want to move.

“This is like a fire. Something needs to happen now,” Stephens said. “I’m in and out of my house early and late and every time I come out of the house, my hand is on my 9 millimeter. Every time….there’s certain streets I don’t even drive down because I have to worry. I’m on the fence like I’m in the military and I’m not but this is immediate.”

Ward 3 Councilwoman Jacque Sample also spoke during the City Council’s comment portion of the meeting, empathizing with her concerns and brought up the work of “NOCAP” and their work in the area.

The Neighborhood Opportunity and Community Accountability Proconsul was formed in May 2025 by the Office of Violence Prevention Advisory Board to bring needed resources to identified areas. Office of Violence Prevention Leader D’Markus Thomas-Brown previously told ABC 17 News the group was considering bringing a community center to the neighborhood.

“I agree with her (Stephens.) Just looking at the data that’s on our crime dashboard, Ward 3 is kind of the hotspots for violence in Columbia, which is why the NOCAP group started here in this ward,” Sample told ABC 17 News on Wednesday. “I am very much aware of the violence and want to address it as effectively as I can from the seat that I am in.”

Sample said she was not aware of the burglaries that Stephens was referring to, but said that she plans to follow-up with Police Chief Jill Schlude about it. Sample also said she plans to speak with Thomas-Brown about anything they can do to reach out to the alleged youth committing the crimes.

The group is made up of residents, Sample, Thomas-Brown and local nonprofits.

Thomas-Brown said on Wednesday afternoon that he had spoken with Stephens shortly before he addressed the City Council on Monday about her concerns. He said he understands the concerns in the area, but thinks that the size of the ward should also be taken into account.

“It’s not to demean any statement but just looking at the raw facts of like ‘OK, this is a big ward so obviously the whole ward is not experiencing these things but there are pockets,” Thomas-Brown said. “You have here these pockets of whether it’s poverty, pockets of housing disparity or what have you that does lend to more of a violent reality for different ones who live in those spaces and I think Ward 3 unfortunately has more of a representation than some of the other wards.”

The group has also secured the contract to provide trauma training. The training will last three hours and will be free to anyone who chooses to join it. The idea stems from the response from community members who said they had not been to heal.

“We developed this program mental health for community, adherence and understanding on grief and loss and adverse childhood experiences,” Thomas-Brown said. “What happens when something traumatic happens in our neighborhood and not only to the adults, but to the kids?” And how can we cope and collectively heal and work back from these things?”

Thomas-Brown also said the group continues to work with the Hanover Village neighborhood about the lack of lighting in the area that residents have raised concerns about.

Sample said she regularly attends the monthly meetings and has been impressed with how engaged in residents have been.

Sample said her role in the meetings is to listen to the concerns of the people who live in the neighborhoods and work to address their concerns about crime and safety. Sample said the group has also worked to talk about and identify where youth in Ward 3 are most at-risk for getting into trouble.

She said that’s been identified as the times school isn’t in session. In response, the group has organized a youth-centered event at Indian Hills Park during spring break next month.

“You know, to try to get the families there, to try to get the youth there to provide something for families and kids to do in a safe spot to at least have one day where we know where they’re at and they’re engaging,” Sample said.

Sample said they’re also working to get law enforcement officers at the event that will be able to engage with the youth and work to build relationship and trust levels.

According to Thomas-Brown, the group is also looking into the possibility of expanding to central Columbia.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Jefferson City man who was accused of shooting at a vehicle in July 2024 pleaded guilty to a felony.

Keiron Robinson, 24, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to illegal gun possession and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He is currently being held at the Cole County Jail. He was originally charged with shooting at a vehicle, two counts of armed criminal action and one count of illegal gun possession.

Court documents in previous reporting say police were called on July 31, 2024, for a weapons offense near East Elm Street and Clark Avenue and officers ended up finding 17 shell casings.

A witness was found on Aug. 1, 2024, and police conducted a search warrant at their residence and found the gun used in the shooting, court documents in previous reporting say.

The witness allegedly told police that Robinson fired the gun several times, the statement says.

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