Category: kmiz-local-news

Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man and a woman were seriously injured in a crash in Morgan County early Sunday morning.

The crash occurred shortly before 12:30 a.m. on Anchorage Road, just east of Coffee Road, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report.

A 46-year-old Gravois Mills woman was being driven west by a 29-year-old Versailles man in a 1989 Lincoln Town Car, the report says. The car went off the right side of the road and hit a tree.

Both passengers were taken to Lake Regional Hospital by ambulance with serious injuries. The man was not wearing a seatbelt. The car was totaled.

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Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Missouri House Bill abolishing the death penalty is set to head to committee Monday for a public hearing.

Sponsored by Rep. Jim Murphy (R-St. Louis), House Bill 2153 will remove the death penalty as a sentencing option and have only life imprisonment without parole as the maximum punishment.

The bill adds that those currently sentenced to death will keep the sentence unless another law changes it.

Capital punishment is currently used for first-degree murder or other Class A felonies in the state. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 102 people have been executed since 1976, when the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty.

23 states, plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, have abolished the death penalty.

Murphy has also gained the support of the bill from the Archbishop of St. Louis, Mitchell Rozanski and Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman (R-Arnold).

The hearing is set for noon Monday in House Hearing Room 5 by the Corrections and Public Institutions Committee. The committee is accepting public testimonies.

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Nia Hinson

PULASKI COUNTY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Dixon woman is facing murder charges for her alleged involvement in a deadly shooting on Friday.

According to a social media post from the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to Highway 28 near Dixon for a report of shots fired. Deputies found Steven L. Chapman, 66, of Dixon with a gunshot wound to the face. He was pronounced dead on scene, the post says.

Lea Ann Barba, 42, of Dixon, Missouri, was then taken into custody in connection with the shooting.

The post states Barba was charged with second-degree murder, although online court records were not available.

Barba is being held at the Pulaski County Jail on a $500,000 bond, according to the post. She was not listed on the jail roster as of Saturday night.

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Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo.

The Columbia Regional Airport is expected to add hundreds of parking spots ahead of Allegiant Airlines starting services to Florida in June.

Airport manager Michael Parks told ABC 17 News in an email that the project would add about 250 new parking spots and pave about 175 existing spots. The project would be completed before June 1, and Allegiant flights would start June 3.

The airport currently has about 1,000 parking spots with a mix of paved and gravel, according to the master plan. Almost 600 of those spots are paved.

According to the master plan, the long-term goal is to have a total of 1,600 spots.

The Columbia City Council needs to approve the first project to go out for bid at its April meeting. Parks said the project would cost about $3 million, but that won’t affect parking rates.

“Parking will remain free. There is no immediate plan to charge for parking at COU,” Parks wrote.

The master plan notes that management has seen people storing their vehicles in the parking lot but not using the airport.

“This additional demand for parking means that at peak hours and weeks, COU’s parking lots are often completely full. To address this, COU will need to consider expanding their parking facilities in the short term or limiting access to parking by charging a nominal fee,” the plan reads.

Gary Scribner said he flies out of Columbia regularly for his job, and parking has always been difficult.

“It’s always a mess trying to find parking. Luckily, I got a Jeep, so I can park on the grass pretty easily,” Scribner said.

He said that added parking would be “a win for everybody.”

Elizabeth Jenkins said Saturday was her first time flying out of Columbia, and that parking was tricky.

“It was a little more difficult than I was expecting it to be, given the size of the airport. It was kind of hard to find a spot,” Jenkins said. “I was lucky that I found one not too far from the front, but I’ve come here once in the past, and had to park pretty far away.”

She said parking at larger airports is easier because there are more parking spots available.

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Euphenie Andre

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Fewer girls are participating in high school basketball across the country. According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, participation in girls basketball has dropped about 21 percent over the past 25 years.

Missouri is among several states seeing an even larger decline, with participation down 34 percent. There were 8,321 players at 568 schools in 2024-25 compared to 12,646 players at 534 schools in 1999-2000.

The Federation, which relies on schools to self-report participation number, said student athletes are still playing sports, just less basketball. Experts point to a combination of factors, including rising costs and an increased interest in other sports.

Families are feeling the financial strain of keeping their kids active in basketball. According to the NFHS survey, the average sports family spent about $1,016 on their child’s primary sport in 2024, a 46 percent increase since 2019.

Parents told ABC 17 News that costs can be significantly higher, with some families spending up to $20,000 per season on travel, tournaments, uniforms, and training.

“You’re talking tens to $20,000 in a summer,” Mark Means said. “It just prices kids out. Basketball is not meant to be that way.”

Means was in Columbia on Friday to support his eleven-year-old daughter on the Troy Trojans. She started playing basketball when she was four years old.

“I’ve had three daughters go through AAU Basketball. Love the coaches, love what they’re doing. It’s way too expensive.”

Erin Dean, a mother to an eighth grader said it all adds up.

“I probably don’t want to calculate that number,” Dean said. “But it’s probably on an annual basis, probably about 20 to 25k with our travel.”

Dean’s daughter started playing basketball in third grade. Dean said she was surprised to learn that participation in girls’ basketball is declining, recalling that St. Louis, where she lives, has long been a “robust” hub for the sport.

“It’s competitive, it’s expensive, it’s time-consuming, and if you have other kids, other family needs, sometimes the prioritization of spending it on basketball, hotels, whatever flights. It’s a burden to a family. So I can understand,” Dean said.

Some programs, like Columbia Supreme, are working to make basketball more accessible. Founder Anthony Johnson said fees are cut roughly in half, ranging from $500 for younger players to $750 for older age groups.

“We make it affordable to make it more accessible. And we actively recruit girls from areas that typically don’t play,” Johnson said. “A lot of the kids, if we didn’t have this format, you know, they wouldn’t be on the team. That’s a very high percentage of the kids.”

The Columbia Supreme has been running since 2018. Johnson said he has not seen a decrease in participation numbers.

“We have a very high return rate,” Johnson said. “I don’t really see the kids that play competitive drop off, that is not something that I’ve seen.”

According to the survey, part of the decline is also attributed to shifting interests. Many girls are choosing sports such as soccer, softball, track, volleyball, flag football, and even girls wrestling, which have all seen a rise in participation.

Dean’s daughter also plays travel soccer.

“We are very busy” Dean said. “I committed to one year of the crazy madness before she goes to high school.”

According to the 2024 National Youth Sports Parent Survey, from the Aspen Institute’s Project Play, many parents feel pressure for their children to focus on a single sport. Nearly half of parents surveyed, 48% said they feel some or significant pressure for their child to specialize, and 53 percent said that pressure comes from their child’s desire to play high school sports. The survey also found that 21% of parents report their child plays their primary sport for 9 to 12 months out of the year.

Means’ daughter also plays soccer and flag football.

“At a young age you need to be playing all these kind of sports. We take our kids and we focus way too early, and they don’t get an opportunity to really kind of expand and see what’s out there,” Dean said.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, nearly 70% of kids quit organized sports by age 13.

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Jessica Hafner

The ABC 17 Stormtrack Weather Team has issued a Weather Alert Day for the likelihood of strong storms tonight. The threat for damaging winds and widespread heavy rain continues overnight as storms push ahead of a cold front.

A Tornado Watch is in effect for Morgan, Camden, and Benton counties until 4:00 a.m.

It’s been another warm and humid day as highs reached near records in the lower 80s along with dew points into the mid-60s. A wave of low pressure to our south will provide forcing for storms as moisture from the Gulf streams in and allows the atmosphere to build lots of potential energy during the day. We’ll have plenty of instability and wind shear to create strong storm updrafts late in the day, but it remains a question when will we be able to access it.

A weather balloon launched shortly after midday by the University of Missouri showed a weak “cap” in place, but little forcing for development as of early afternoon. MU launched another balloon around 3:30 p.m. that will give us a little better idea of what to expect for the rest of early evening as cumulus clouds begin to tower to our north.

If the cap, caused by a warm layer of air in the lower atmosphere, erodes, then development may start earlier in the evening and have more greater instability to use. This is the specific case in which storms would have the potential for very large hail and strong tornadoes. With later development, storms would still carry a risk for tornadoes, hail, and damaging wind but to a weaker extent.

Regardless of late afternoon or early evening development, storms are likely and will bring at least an isolated severe threat ahead of a cold front later in the night. The front will bring a sharp cool down by Wednesday, and an end to rain by lunch time on Wednesday afternoon.

Storms will pose the threat of all hazards, including large hail, damaging 60+ mph winds, and a few tornadoes. The large hail and tornado threat is largely tied to our late afternoon and early evening storms. This activity will pose the greatest risk if it can develop. The Storm Prediction Center has northeastern Missouri in a level 3/5 severe risk, where the best chance to see these early storms resides. However, a lesser risk does exit for all of Missouri for all severe threats.

Storms become more congealed with the potential of 1-2″ total rainfall through Wednesday. Isolated flooding is possible, especially along low water crossings.

Make sure you have multiple ways to get alerts through the evening and stay ahead of the storm timeline with our news and weather apps. Set the weather app to follow your location to get watches and warnings for your area.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Power was reported to be fully restored Saturday after storms left hundreds of Mid-Missourians experiencing outages.

Saturday morning, Cooper County crews were working to restore power to more than 400 Ameren customers.

The number of those without power started to rise again around 10:30 p.m. on Friday night.

Storms began entering the area earlier in the day, leading to a tornado watch being issued in the western part of our viewing area and a number of counties being put in a severe thunderstorm warning.

There were 475 Ameren customers without power in Cooper County around 10:30 p.m. on Friday. That number was down to 103 by 11:30 p.m., but jumped to 1,016 just hours later. By 10 a.m. Saturday, 405 were without power.

The cause of the outages was equipment damage from overnight storms and power and mainly reported in Boonville. According to Ameren’s outage map, power should be restored by 1 p.m.

The Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives’ map showed 142 people Laclede Electric Cooperative customers in Pulaski County without power at 8 a.m. Power was reported to be back on for all by 9 a.m.

At 10:35 p.m. Friday, the map showed 114 Co-Mo Electric Cooperative customers in Morgan County without power. Another 46 customers from the same company had no reported power in Moniteau County.

By 12 a.m. Saturday, the map showed power was fully restored in Morgan County, and 38 members were reported to be without power in Moniteau County. No outages were reported in Moniteau County by 2 a.m.

Callaway County saw 213 residences without power at 11:30 p.m., nearly all of those being customers of Callaway Electric Cooperative. That number was down to 85 by midnight. Consolidated Electric Co-op in Callaway County reported 21 customers experiencing outages around 2 a.m., bringing the total to 106 without power. No outages were reported by 6 a.m. in Callaway County.

The Callaway Electric Cooperative also reported outages in Montgomery County, where 67 customers were without power at 6 a.m. Saturday. No customers were experiencing outages by 9 a.m.

There were nearly 300 Boone Electric Cooperative customers without power on Friday night.

Boone Electric showed five outages were affecting 283 customers around 9 p.m. Most of the outages were reported around the Hallsville area.

For most, power was restored by 9:30 p.m. Three outages were affecting seven members at 11:45 p.m. By 2:30 a.m., only one customer was reportedly without power. More than 50 of Ameren’s Boone County customers were without power as of 10 a.m.

ABC 17 News reached out to find out the cause for some ongoing outages.

No outages have been reported for those living within Columbia city limits.

A handful of outages were sporadically reported around the rest of the area.

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Euphenie Andre

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Organizers of the annual True/False Film Fest said extensive safety measures are in place this weekend as thousands of people gather in downtown Columbia.

To host the festival, the Ragtag Film Society was required to submit a detailed safety plan to the city outlining procedures for medical emergencies, severe weather, power outages and other potential issues.

Despite expected rainy conditions Friday, the festival’s March March parade continued as planned, with volunteers stationed throughout downtown to help manage crowds and road closures.

According to the festival’s safety plan, several measures are in place to protect crowds from potential vehicle threats. At key access points: Ninth and Elm streets, Ninth and Locust streets, and the west alley off Ninth Street, organizers installed 8-foot barricades. Two vehicles are positioned directly behind each barricade to create an additional protective barrier.

Volunteers stationed at those checkpoints have keys to the vehicles so they can quickly move them if emergency responders need access to the area. Volunteers Josh Loeza, Chris Gadsen and Nathan Boyack were in charge of helping direct festivalgoers, monitoring barricades and ensuring emergency vehicles can pass if necessary.

“I’m working the parade. I’m moving barricades when it’s necessary for emergency vehicles to get through, or if volunteers need to move their cars, and just informing people,” Loeza said.

Festival organizers said volunteers received safety training before the event began. Volunteer Lily Lusk said that training included guidance on how to respond to emergencies.

“They have a super extensive sort of like what to do in case of any emergency, they gave us in our orientation. Kind of like a QR code to read over. So everybody’s prepared for anything,” Lusk said.

According to the safety plan, volunteers are instructed to call 911 if a medical emergency occurs and are not allowed to perform any actions they are not trained to handle.

The plan also outlines procedures in the event of severe weather. Volunteers would direct festivalgoers to the nearest shelter and help keep people away from doors and windows until conditions improve.

Volunteers are also prepared to assist if a power outage occurs during a screening or event. In that situation, they would use flashlights to help guide attendees and ask them to remain in their seats while organizers work to restore power.

Organizers and volunteers said large crowds are expected throughout the weekend.

“Very congested, but to be expected with the parade,” Boyack said.

The Columbia Police Department said the department does not plan to have additional officers assigned specifically for the festival in the downtown area this weekend.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man has been charged in Cole County with first-degree statutory rape and statutory sodomy of a child younger than 14 years old.

Greggery Marshall, 44, of Jefferson City, is being held at the Cole County Jail without bond. A court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement claims the Boone County Department of Family Services contacted the Jefferson City Police Department on Feb. 19 about alleged abuse Marshall did against a child victim. Family Services was tipped off by a mental health professional who was told about the assaults by the child, the statement says.

The victim allegedly described a series of assaults to the Child Advocacy Center that occurred from 2020-24 committed by Marshall, the statement says.

Marshall was also accused of sexually abuse a family member of the victim and a friend of the victim, the statement says. He allegedly denied the allegations to police.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was shot by Columbia police on Christmas Day was indicted by a Boone County grand jury on Friday.

Marc Lucas, 31, of the state of California, was charged with first-degree arson, misdemeanor first-degree trespassing, two counts of unlawful use of a weapon, a single count of armed criminal action and two counts of misdemeanor fourth-degree assault.

He is being held at the Boone County Jail. An arraignment is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Monday.

Court documents in previous reporting say Lucas allegedly set a couch on fire at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel at Grindstone Parkway and Highway 63. He then got into a fight with Holiday Inn Express employees after he was denied a room at that hotel, previous reporting indicates. He had also allegedly pulled out a knife during some point in the encounter.

Lucas then allegedly walked to a nearby Break Time gas station, pulled out the knife and threatened to assault someone while officers were there, the statement says.

Officers allegedly tried to use a stun gun while detaining Lucas, but Lucas then allegedly tried to attack one of the officers with a knife and he was shot, police wrote in a December press release.

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