Category: kmiz-local-news

Erika McGuire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

President Donald Trump and other world leaders gathered Monday to sign a Middle East peace deal, bringing relief and hopeful reactions to local groups in Mid-Missouri.

George Smith, with Mid-Missouri for Justice in Palestine, is relieved but also concerned following the recent peace deal.

“It’s a relief to have the actual genocide — as I and many others think it should be referred to as — it’s good to have that genocide stopped,” Smith said. Let us hope that we will not start again because I think that what the agreement has come about now is very is a very short-term agreement,”

According to CNN, at least 67,683 Palestinians were killed in Gaza during the two-year war. CNN reports since a ceasefire took place, 323 deaths have been recorded as bodies have been found underneath rubble.

Rabbi Avraham Lapine, with the Chabad Jewish Center of MU and Mid-Missouri, said the peace deal is a moment of relief and joy for the Jewish community.

“It’s very exciting news for the Jewish community, it’s two years. These hostages were held in captivity in hell, literally, by Hamas. Finally, after two years of being tortured in tunnels, finally free. So it’s really really really very exciting news for the entire Jewish community,” Lapine said.

Humanitarian aid has been a concern, with many aid shipments being halted during the conflict. Smith said there likely could be 600 trucks entering Gaza everyday to bring in aid, but he claims it’s minimal to what the people of Gaza need.

“They will need it but they’re needed at a much higher rate than they have in the past because now something like 90% of the housing stock has been damaged or totally destroyed enough that there’s not nearly enough real housing for the people of Gaza,” Smith said. “They’ll have to have immediate aid, immediate aid to help them live for the time being and also massive scale aid for reconstruction, which is clearly the rubble, I don’t think they even have the machinery for doing that,”

While the deal offers a sense of hope, both Smith and Lapine expressed skepticism about how long the deal will last.

“Israel, especially this government, (is a) pretty right-wing government led by Netanyahu, has been very unwilling to make long-term commitments to peace like this. It’s very unlike them to have, haven’t agreed to as much as they have,” Smith said. “I would be pleased if it carries on in a really significant way. But I would be unsurprised if it doesn’t,”

“I’m concerned that Hamas is not going to really give up their arms and give up control. That the biggest concern that many people have because they’re ready. Just from looking at some articles and things, it looks like they’re not running so fast to give-up control and give up their arms,” Lapine said.

Smith also criticized U.S. involvement in the war.

“I think that it may well be that if Netanyahu’s government openly defies the U.S. government it may even be that the U.S. government will stop shipping arms to them,” Smith said. “Our country is very complicit in this, in this genocide because the genocide is depended on the weapons supplied by the United States,”

As part of the peace deal, Hamas released the remaining 20 living Israeli hostages on Monday and Israel freed nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, according to national reporting.

“They released people who have blood on their hands, the terrorists that literally are responsible for the death, the murder of Israelis, but they were willing to release those prisoners to get back the Israeli hostages that were taken, who are just regular citizens who are not in any way a prisoner of war or anything.” Lapine added.

At least one person who had ties to Mid-Missouri was killed during the war.

Deborah Matias, an American citizen living in Israel who was born in Boone County, died while shielding her son from bullets fired by Hamas gunmen.

Her son, Rotern Matias, was shot in the stomach but survived.

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Nia Hinson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia Board of Education is advocating to change a state law.

During its Monday night meeting, board members discussed their 2025-26 legislative priorities, one of which had to do with superintendent payouts. CPS is now advocating to change the state law, making it so that superintendents are paid no more than one year’s salary upon separation or termination.

The district had a costly separation agreement last school year with former Superintendent Brian Yearwood. CPS paid Yearwood the remainder of his contract year, which was about $667,000.

“There have been several districts that have separated from their superintendents over the last couple of years and who have had similar impacts as what we experienced here,” CPS spokeswoman Michelle Baumstark said.

The district approved the contract for Superintendent Jeff Klein in March, setting his year salary at $255,000. Under his contract, the maximum payout is capped at one year’s salary, if a separation is deemed necessary.

According to documents, CPS wants to “protect taxpayers from undue burden.”

Documents from the Missouri School Boards’ Association 2025 fall delegate assembly, CPS claimed using taxpayer dollars to give six-figure payouts to “failing superintendents is not fiscally responsible.” CPS also wrote that it included language in its contract for Klein due to its expensive agreement with Yearwood.

“We feel it would be beneficial to smaller districts who may not have the draw of a place like Columbia to have a statutory limit to the fiscal risk,” the document says. “Our board discussed that although we are typically in favor of local control in most situations, we could not think of a time that a local board would prefer to pay more money than less to a superintendent upon separation or termination.”

The document also shows MSBA’s Advocacy Committee recommending to oppose the change presented by the Columbia Board of Education.

“It has not gone through a vote of our entire delegate assembly so there has not been a vote one way or another on that proposal from Columbia,” Senior Director of Advocacy Caitlin Whaley said.

The MSBA could vote on the issue during its meeting next week.

Columbia Board President John Lyman told ABC 17 News the district plans to take it back to the MSBA.

“Next week is our MSBA conference. We’ll have a delegate assembly there where we’ll be able to go. Our four delegates will go and vote on different topics, and the opportunity is there to potentially present that on the floor and get the discussion going,” Lyman said. “We’re going to reach out to MSBA to kind of talk to them about what their initial thoughts were, what the pros and cons and make adjustments.”

State Rep. David Tyson Smith (D-Columbia) also told ABC 17 News in a text message on Monday that he would support the change.

“Since we are dealing with tax payer dollars, I think a year or a year and a half contract is reasonable,” Tyson Smith wrote.

A list of the board’s legislative priorities can be viewed below.

Legislative Priorities 25-26 (002)_491407k3bum5s0fay2htsm0jvhdk2qDownload

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Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man accused of trying to set a house on fire in Northeast Columbia will make an appearance in front of a judge at the Boone County Courthouse Tuesday morning.

Brandon Butchkoski, 47, will be in front of Judge Benjamin Miller at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday for a bond review hearing.

Butchkoski was arrested in July on charges of possession of a controlled substance and first-degree arson in connection with a fire on June 29. Police said officers responded to the 1500 block of Paris Road to assist firefighters.

Investigators learned Butchkoski allegedly tried to set a single-story house on fire when a backpack with gas in it was thrown on the roof. Minor property damage was reported.

Earlier this month, Butchkoski was charged in another case for first-degree arson and second-degree murder after he was accused of setting another house on fire in June on Paris Road.

He is accused in the death of Donovan Baylis. Baylis was burned in a fire that was set at his home and died about a month later at a St. Louis area hospital.

Police said in a statement that they gathered enough evidence to arrest Butchkoski for the June 29 arson before they had enough evidence to recommend charges for the June 15 fire. Butchkoski, who is homeless, was denied bond, according to court records.

A court date has not yet been set. Butchkoski is currently being held in the Boone County Jail on no bond.

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Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 29-year-old Wellsville man was seriously hurt after a crash in Montgomery County just before midnight Monday, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

According to the report, the man was driving a 2002 Saturn LS south on Highway 19 at Harness Dr. when he went off the left side of the road, hit a ditch and flipped the car.

The man was taken by ambulance to University Hospital with serious injuries. The report states he was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. The Saturn had extensive damage.

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Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Cole County Prosecuting Attorney Locke Thompson said Tuesday two victims in a Jefferson City shooting have died.

Thompson said in a news release that charges against Michael A. Davis, 40, of Jefferson City, will be upgraded from assault and domestic assault to first-degree murder.

“The number of shots or stab wounds or something like that could be indicative of maybe some reflection, or the ability to reflect, and therefore first-degree versus second-degree,” Thompson said in an interview with ABC 17 News.

Davis is accused of shooting and killing Shawna Davis, 39, and Sofie Mulcahey, 31, both of Jefferson City. A vigil was held Friday for Mulcahey.

The probable cause statement says Jefferson City police were investigating a crash in the 1800 block of Highway 50/63 East when they heard multiple shots being fired. Shawna Davis and Mulcahey were found in the 1100 Block of Cordell st. with life-threatening injuries in a vehicle in a wooded area.

Thompson said in a release that both were taken to University Hospital, where they died.

A first-degree murder conviction could result in either the death penalty or life in prison for Davis.

In a statement to ABC 17 News, Tanya Bohlkin, Mulcahey’s aunt, said her family is grateful the prosecutor’s office upgraded the charges to allow for the most serious conviction available.

Megan Stone, Mulcahey’s best friend, told ABC 17 News she hopes the state pursues the death penalty.

“He’s a coward and I hope he’s reminded of every single day,” Stone said of Michael Davis. “She went to go save her friend and he shot 30 rounds into her car.”

Police found roughly 30 shell casings following the shooting in the 900 block of Harding Street, and Davis was detained shortly after, the statement says. Stone said she grew up with Mulcahey in Harrisburg and that they met in kindergarten.

“Twenty-six years together,” Stone said. “She was my very, very, very best friend and I hope everybody gets a best friend like her.”

She said Mulcahey was trying to help Davis get away from a domestic violence situation.

“I urge everybody, every woman in that situation, to just leave because no man who loves you would ever, it’s just not worth it,” Stone said. “Sofie just went to go get her friend and didn’t come home.”

Thompson said the state has not officially decided whether it will pursue the death penalty. He explained what could make a case qualify.

“Whether it was multiple victims, whether others were placed in danger of being killed,” Thompson said. “Things like if the person had a history of violent offenses or a prior murder conviction.”

Michael Davis is also charged with one count of felony unlawful use of a weapon and three counts of armed criminal action.

Michael Davis has an arraignment for the new charges scheduled for Friday.

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Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The No. 16 Missouri Tigers are heading out on the road for the first time this season.

The Tigers will continue their SEC schedule Saturday with a trip to Auburn. Mizzou fell from No. 14 after losing a close one last weekend in Columbia to Alabama, 27-24.

Now they’ll attempt to get back in the win column against unranked Auburn.

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Meghan Drakas

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia mother is asking community members to be brave and come forward to the police to help solve her son’s 2017 murder.

“It has really affected us … We just need someone to speak up and say what they saw,” Vivian Morgan said. “I guess they fear for their life, which is understandable. But I feel like we need to get justice for Jamar.”

Jamar Hicks was born in Minneapolis in 1990 and moved to Columbia with his mother when he was 5 years old.

“He was a kind and sweet young man,” Morgan said. “He was very friendly, spoke to everyone, and had a crazy laugh that everyone loved. You just heard him coming.”

His mother says growing up, her oldest son loved playing sports, including soccer, basketball and football. Hicks attended Shepard Boulevard Elementary School, Lange Middle School and graduated from Hickman High School.

Jamar Hick’s senior yearbook photo (credit: Columbia Public Schools)

After high school, his mother says Hicks worked in the shop at Bob McCosh. She said he loved cleaning and working with cars. He drove an Infiniti G35 Silver Coupe. His mother says he was driving that car the morning he died.

When shots were fired along Trimble Road in east Columbia around 3 a.m. on July 16, 2017, Columbia Police Lt. Matt Gremore said, officers were nearby at the IHOP and immediately ran over. When officers arrived, they found that a woman and a man in their 20s and Hicks had all been shot.

“I think they were ambushed, that’s what it looked like to me,” Gremore said. “I believe this was a targeted event.”

Gremore said Hicks was shot multiple times and was found inside the car. Police say the woman who was shot ran into the Break Time convenience store, and the other man who was shot was found nearby.

At least 24 evidence markers alongside Jamar Hick’s vehicle could be seen by ABC 17 News crews at the shooting scene of Hicks and two others along Trimble Road in east Columbia on July 16, 2017.

“The belief is they were all shot while inside the car,” Gremore said. “Two were able to run out and get out of the car … you could tell that the car had come across the road and had rested after hitting the curb here where it came to a stop.”

Gremore wouldn’t share a description of the suspect’s car but said police collected evidence at the scene, including shell casings, Hick’s car, the victims’ clothing and surveillance footage from nearby businesses.

“There [are] multiple people I believe are involved in this and multiple people that we would want to talk to, to get the truth out of them of what happened,” Gremore said.

Police say all three of the victims were taken to the hospital. Hicks’ friends survived, but he was pronounced dead not long after the shooting.

Check back and watch ABC 17 News at 10 for the rest of the story.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman was charged in Montgomery County on Thursday after three children allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine.

Missy Lacomb, of Middletown, was charged with three counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child. A criminal summons was served to Lacomb on Thursday, according to court filings. A hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 4.

The probable cause statement says deputies were called at 4:36 p.m. Aug. 17 to a Montgomery County residence for a reported domestic incident. Three children were removed from the residence and all three – ages 16, 10 and 5 – allegedly tested positive for meth, the statement says.

The statement alleges Lacomb has been contacted by authorities before about care for the youth.

“Lacomb discussed with me her having the children all the time while the other suspects were out all night,” the statement says.

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abc17news-Newsroom

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The City of Columbia will gather public input Thursday night on how to make the Business Loop safer for pedestrians, motorcyclists and others.

The meeting is set for 5 p.m. at the Boone Electric headquarters on Range Line Street.

The road safety audit on Business Loop 70 between Stadium Boulevard in west Columbia and Eastland Circle in east Columbia is part of the Vision Zero road safety program. The project aims to improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists, seniors, motorcyclists and school-age children. The findings will be integrated into the larger Loop corridor planning process.

The study, a collaboration between the Columbia City Council, The Loop CID and Great Rivers Engineering, seeks to improve safety, accessibility, and economic vitality along the corridor.

The Columbia City Council recently approved several million-dollar infrastructure projects, including the study for Business Loop 70.

The total cost of the study is capped at $2,623,500, with $500,000 funded by Capital Improvement Program sales tax funds. The rest will be covered by federal funding. Great Rivers Engineering will conduct surveys, gather public input, and develop engineering plans to address issues such as stormwater management, bike lanes, and pedestrian crosswalks.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man and a woman from Sedalia were killed in a crash Wednesday at Highway 50 and Route MM in Pettis County, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says the crash occurred as a 2015 Toyota Camry – driven by a 50-year-old Sedalia man — went southbound through the intersection after the light turned green. A 2004 MAC dump truck hit the side of the Toyota in the intersection, the report says.

The dump truck was driven by a 36-year-old Shelbina man who had no reported injuries.

The 50-year-old man was flown to Bothwell Regional Hospital and was declared dead there. The passenger in the Toyota – a 48-year-old woman from Sedalia – was pronounced dead at the scene by the Pettis County coroner. Everyone in the crash wore a seatbelt, the report says

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

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