Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Blue Springs man was charged on Saturday in Pettis County with nine child sex crimes.

Brice Story was charged with three counts of second-degree statutory rape, three counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and three counts of incest.

An arraignment was held on Monday and Story appeared by video from the Pettis County Jail. A mugshot was not immediately available on Monday. A hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 31.

The complaint filed in the case alleges Story sexually assaulted the same victim a number of times from Aug. 1-30, 2024, and March 1-June 30, 2025.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Lake Ozark man has been charged with two misdemeanors after he was accused of exposing himself at a Miller County bar on Friday.

Jeremy Chorpening, 38, was charged on Saturday with resisting arrest and first-degree sexual misconduct. He was arrested, but posted a $2,000 bond, according to Monday court filings. An initial court appearance is scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday, May 13.

The probable cause statement says police were called at 10:48 p.m. to Mary Byrde’s in the 1200 block of Bagnell Dam Boulevard, where a security guard and multiple patrons reported seeing Chorpening expose himself. He was found in another nearby bar, S.N.A.F.U., and was ordered to come outside by police, the statement says.

Chorpening allegedly started resisting when police tried to detain him, the statement says. Police used a stun gun, but Chorpening was not affected, court documents say. He then ran away, but was later found behind Wok-N-Roll, the statement says.

While Chorpening was being booked unto the jail, police received a call about a 2018 Ford F-150 Raptor being damaged during the arrest, the statement says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was accused of breaking into a fraternity house on College Avenue in Columbia was eventually found on top of a Hertz Car Rental on Friday.

Willem Campbell, 31, of Columbia, was charged with first-degree burglary, two counts of felony stealing, one count of misdemeanor stealing and an infraction of second-degree trespassing. He is being held at the Boone County Jail on a $25,000 bond. A court appearance was scheduled for Monday afternoon.

One of the probable cause statements says Campbell was found on the roof of Hertz Car Rental at 1905 Range Line St. He climbed down when police arrived and claimed he was sleeping on the roof, the statement says. Police found Campbell with several stolen credit and debit cards, court documents say.

A second probable cause statement claims on March 15, Campbell illegally entered Sigma Nu – a fraternity at the University of Missouri – located on 710 College Avenue. Campbell allegedly went into a bedroom and stole someone’s wallet, the statement says.

Campbell was eventually escorted out of the building by several residents and one of the residents took a photo of Campbell, the statement says.

The victim allegedly kept a tracking card inside the wallet and found Campbell at an address on Rosemary Lane, the statement says.

The photograph taken by the Sigma Nu resident was allegedly used “for identification purposes through facial recognition software and also distributed to local law enforcement agencies in Boone County,” the statement says.

The statement says Campbell was identified as a suspect by a Columbia police officer and facial recognition software.

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Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Firefighters, friends and loved ones of Billy Hurt took part in a funeral procession for him from The Crossing church in south Columbia to the Boonville area.

Hurt, a retired firefighter, was killed a week ago working safety at a sprint car track.

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Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

EDITOR’S NOTE: AI was used in background research for this article

A Columbia woman scheduled to stand trial in March pleaded guilty during a pre-trial conference Monday to a fatal 2023 crash that killed a teenage motorcyclist.

Elizabeth Lopez was charged with second-degree involuntary manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident following the collision on West Broadway. She pleaded guilty to three counts of leaving the scene and the manslaughter charge was dropped.

In a statement, Lopez’s lawyer Jessica Caldera said Lopez she maintains her innocence for involuntary manslaughter.

The crash occurred on Aug. 5, 2023, and resulted in the death of 18-year-old Walker Davis. Police say Lopez pulled her vehicle out of an apartment complex in the 3600 block of West Broadway into the path of two motorcycles, causing a collision that killed Davis and injured two other people.

The family of Davis had mixed reactions to the plea deal, calling both a step forward and a step back.

“It was the best choice to make sure that we got her to plead guilty on the other counts,” Davis’s mother, Mary Davis said. “She was, in the prosecutor’s words, ‘dead to rights’ on those three charges, there’s no denying them, and so she doesn’t have a leg to stand on.”

After the crash, police say Lopez re-entered the Kelly’s Ridge apartments parking lot and fled the scene. Court documents allege she went back to her apartment and told her boyfriend about the crash. While officers investigated the scene and towed her vehicle from outside the apartment, Lopez allegedly did not make herself known to the police.

“I hope to see some humanity, so far, she’s not shown that at all,” Davis said. “Not when she left my son on the road. Not when she left those other two drivers on the road, we have yet to see any humanity.”

Caldera adds that this is “a hard case all around, and it’s a sad situation.”

Lopez reportedly told investigators later that she consumed an alcoholic drink after returning to her apartment. She contacted the police early the next morning to provide a statement and insurance information.

Following her arrest, Lopez later paid a $7,500 bond after the August crash.

Davis adds that the family wants to make sure Lopez is held accountable.

“Today, my son has been dead for 961 days, I have served 961 days, my husband has served 961 days and all of my other five children have served 961 days,” Davis said. “This accident happened two and a half years ago, she has not spent one night in jail.”

Lopez is scheduled to be sentenced March 31 at 1:30 p.m. Lopez’s lawyer adds they plan to argue for Lopez to receive a sentence of probation.

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Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A funeral and procession will be held Monday for former Columbia Fire Captain Billy Hurt, who died after an accident at the Kennedale Speedway Park in Texas earlier this month.

Hurt’s funeral service will begin at 2 p.m. Monday at The Crossing Church on Southland Drive. The procession will begin around 3:15 p.m. and travel west on Grindstone Parkway, north onto Providence Road, then west to Stadium Blvd. and head westbound on I-70 to the Route B exit in Boonville.

The procession will then travel through Boonville around 3:45 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Drivers are encouraged to avoid the sides of the road and intersections along Route B, Route J and Route O during the procession.

Any Boonville resident wishing to pay their respects as the procession goes by can do so by gathering at the empty parking lot by the Rick Ball car dealership on Main Street or the Route B mall parking lot.

Billy Hurt was a longtime sprint car safety official and retired Columbia firefighter who died during an accident at a World of Outlaws event in Texas on March 14. The Kennedale Police Department said two officials collided while responding to an on-track sprint car crash, ejecting both from their vehicles.

The 66-year-old had served as a sprint car safety official for more than 23 years, a role colleagues described as one of his true passions.

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Olivia Hayes

MOBERLY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 26-year-old Madison man is dead and two women are hurt after a crash involving a horse-drawn buggy in Randolph County just before 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

According to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a 75-year-old Moberly woman driving a Ford Escape was heading west on Route M about three miles west of Middle Grove when she hit the back of the buggy.

The man was pronounced dead on scene. A 20-year-old Madison woman, who was a passenger in the buggy, was flown to University Hospital with serious injuries. The 75-year-old woman had minor injuries and was taken to Moberly Regional Medical Center by ambulance.

Both the buggy and Ford were totaled.

Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop B told ABC 17 News on Sunday it was investigating a crash involving an Amish Buggy on Route M near the Randolph and Monroe County line.

MSHP’s Crash Investigative Unit was at the crash site taking measurements around 8 p.m. Sunday. Troop B said the road would be closed to all traffic until the investigation was completed.

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Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri lawmakers come back to session Monday to pick up where they left off and the Senate is expected to review some House Bills that representatives squeezed through before break.

The bill that would phase out the income tax, HJR 173, was sent to the Senate just before the legislature paused business and Senators were able to give it a first read. Eliminating the state income tax is a legislative priority for Governor Mike Kehoe and many Republican lawmakers.

House members also approved House Bill 3146, which would give the Secretary of State the authority to rewrite ballot language that is challenged in court and deemed unfair up to three times. This bill was also given a first read in the Senate.

HB 3146 closely replicates a bill passed in the 2025 legislative session. Senate Bill 22 was struck down by the Missouri Supreme Court earlier this year because it contained language relating to the Attorney General.

House Bill 3491 is waiting to be assigned to the House calendar after being passed out of the Special Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs on March 12th–the week before the break started. This bill would tighten English-proficiency laws for CDL drivers. It comes after a semi-truck driver who drove miles in the wrong direction last month on Missouri Highway 61.

Lawmakers are also considering House Bill 2003, which would tie state funding for public universities and colleges to student enrollment. Big universities, like the University of Missouri and Missouri State University, would receive millions more dollars, according to previous reporting. However, small universities in Missouri like Lincoln University and Truman State University could see funding cuts. HB 2003 was passed out of the budget committee before break.

Senators might debate on the floor whether public school students can transfer to a school district that they don’t live in. Senate Bill 971 was passed out of the education committee in February and is now on the informal Senate calendar. If passed, the bill would unlock millions of dollars in additional state funding for public schools that accept transfer students.

The 2026 legislative session ends on May 16th, and lawmakers have filed more than 2,000 bills in the House.

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Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri Department of Transportation is scheduled to close the intersection of Conley Road and Business Loop 70 for about 60 days while the crossing is replaced with a roundabout.

According to MoDOT, the businesses near the closure will remain open, but the roads near the intersection, like Conley Road, Business Loop 70 and Conley Road off the I-70 Connector, will be closed.

Courtesy: MoDOT

Alternate routes include East Walnut Street and northbound on Trimble Road.

MoDOT adds that the roundabout will help make the intersection safer and more efficient.

“Roundabouts have fewer conflict points, which, along with slower speeds and calmer traffic, can translate into as much as 76 percent fewer crashes and fewer crash-related injuries,” a MoDOT press release says.

Board_Conley_Road_Roundabout_1Download

The roundabout is part of the Improve I-70: Columbia to Kingdom City project. The overall project costs $405 million and will include new pavement on all lanes of I-70 and improvements to the I-70 interchanges in Columbia and Kingdom City.

Construction is expected to end in May, weather permitting.

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