Category: kmiz-local-news

Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The jurors have been selected for a murder trial underway in Boone County.

Dalton Perkins, 33, of Sturgeon, is charged with second-degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action, one count of first-degree domestic assault and a count of unlawful use of a weapon for the death of a 56-year-old man in May 2025.

Perkins’ two-day jury trial with Judge Benjamin Miller began at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

During opening statements, one of the prosecuting attorneys confirmed the victim’s identity as 56-year-old Steven Perkins, Dalton’s father.

In court, Dalton Perkins’ defense attorney claimed there was another gun in the house; the attorney said that Dalton shot Steven in self-defense, fearing he would get that gun.

The prosecution called a Boone County Joint Communications phone operator — who answered the call made by Dalton Perkins’ mother — to the stand. Dalton Perkins was seen crying in court as the call played.

On the stand, the Columbia police officer who found Dalton Perkins that night said he recognized him from going to high school together. Two Boone County deputies and a crime scene investigator were also called to the stand.

Court was released for the night on Wednesday just before 6 p.m., and the Judge said court will resume at 8 a.m. Thursday. The trial is expected to take two days, but could go on until Friday.

Deputies were called to the 18900 block of Route NN in northern Boone County at about 8 p.m. May 3, 2025, after Perkins allegedly shot the victim during a fight, according to the probable cause statement. The man had at least one gunshot wound to the torso and died at the scene despite being given life-saving aid, court documents in previous reporting say.

The witness who reported the shooting said Perkins shot at them, grabbed their hair and threw them from the porch, documents say.

According to Missouri law, Perkins’ second-degree murder charge is classified as a Class A felony that has a potential sentence of 10-30 years or life in prison. Perkins’ first-degree domestic assault charge is a Class B felony that carries a sentence of five to 15 years.

Armed criminal action charges carry a sentence of three to 15 years. Perkins’ unlawful use of a weapon charge is classified as a Class E felony and has a maximum sentence of four years, if found guilty.

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Matthew Sanders

A botched lethal injection in Tennessee left a woman in critical condition after the drug used failed to kill her.

Christa Pike was conscious and speaking Tuesday, her lawyer said, but she suffered severe damage to her arm, and a long recovery is expected. Pike, convicted in the 1995 murder of a 19-year-old woman, was injected with pentobarbital after the execution team struggled to get the IV into a vein. She survived two lethal doses.

The failed execution has magnified calls for an end to lethal injection.

The drug used by Tennessee and many other states is the same one used to carry out lethal injection in Missouri.

Do you think states and the federal government should reconsider lethal injection? Let us know by voting in the poll.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office says a man who was found dead on Tuesday had likely died several weeks before being found.

The sheriff’s office wrote on its social media that Missouri Department of Transportation workers found human remains near Highway 50, west of Route FF in Knob Noster. The sheriff’s office says the man who was found was a 70-year-old Raytown man.

The name of the man was not publicly released, but authorities say no foul play is suspected at this time. The family of the man has been notified.

“Initial investigations indicate the individual had likely been deceased for several weeks prior to discovery,” the post says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A St. James man was charged with multiple felonies after he was accused of seriously injuring another man during a Sunday night attack.

Stacey Cameron Johnson, 37, was charged in Phelps County with first-degree assault, armed criminal action and drug possession. He is being held at the Phelps County Jail without bond. A court date has not been set.

The probable cause statement says law enforcement was called to Dicky Bub Farm and Home in Rolla at 8:40 p.m. Sunday for an assault. Witnesses performed CPR on the victim while first responders were en route, the statement says.

The victim had a severe head injury and police noted seeing “suspected brain matter and skull fragments” in the roadway, the statement says. The victim was flown to University Hospital, according to the report.

Witnesses allegedly told police they saw Johnson use a metal fence post to assault the victim. A roommate of the victim had allegedly told police the next day that Johnson was the attacker, the statement says.

Video footage allegedly showed Johnson holding the fence post and confronting the victim before hitting him, the statement says. After the victim was on the ground, Johnson allegedly hit the victim six more time, police wrote.

Johnson eventually sent an apology message to the victim’s girlfriend through the social media application SnapChat, the statement says.

Johnson was found in a camper on Highway 8 in St. James and police allegedly found a baggie of methamphetamine during the arrest, the statement says.

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Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) 

Former Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey took aim at Columbia Mayor Barbara Buffaloe during a Tuesday night speech, accusing her of undermining law enforcement and the city, while also voicing support for a proposed new Boone County Jail.

Bailey made the comments while serving as the featured keynote speaker at the Columbia Pachyderm Club’s annual Chili Supper at the American Legion, one of his first public appearances in Missouri since resigning last week as co-deputy director of the FBI.

During the speech, Bailey addressed public safety in Columbia and criticized Buffloe for “not giving law enforcement enough support,” while calling for greater state involvement in the city.

“The great purple-headed Buffaloe is doing everything she can to run down the police and ruin this community. We can’t let that happen. The state of Missouri at some point is going to have to step in because we can’t let the great purple-headed Buffaloe destroy a vital state institution like the University of Missouri,” Bailey said during his speech. “Your kids should be able to go downtown and you should be able to go downtown. Alumni should be able to come to this community and go downtown on the Friday night without fear, of getting mugged. The businesses deserve that. The people deserve that.”

After the speech, Bailey doubled down on his criticism when asked what more he would like to see Buffaloe and Columbia leaders do to improve downtown safety.

“More support for our law enforcement officers. At the end of the day, the leadership in Columbia is more focused on DEI programs and drag shows for kids and porno books in libraries, than they are actually securing downtown and ensuring public safety and justice for victims,” Bailey told ABC 17 News.

Bailey also expressed support for Proposition L, a 3/8-cent sales tax that Boone County voters will consider Nov. 3. The measure would help fund construction of a new Boone County Jail and has been given a sunset date of Dec. 31, 2042.

“It doesn’t matter if the cops arrest people, if they don’t have a place to lock them up. You don’t have a place to lock folks up. It doesn’t matter how many police you have on the street, you got to have a place to lock them up,” Bailey said during the speech. “You’re paying a lot of money right now to ship prisoners out of county. That’s called a new jail at some point. So I want you all to consider that and think about the criminal justice system, how that’s the cornerstone of prosperous communities.”

Bailey’s comments in Columbia came about a week after he announced his resignation from the FBI. His resignation took effect Oct. 2, and he said in a post on X that he was leaving to return to his family in Missouri. He reiterated that statement during Tuesday’s speech. FBI Director Kash Patel later thanked Bailey for “answering the call to serve.”

Bailey joined the FBI after leaving the Missouri attorney general’s office. He was appointed attorney general by Gov. Mike Parson in 2022 and won a full term in 2024. Just one year into that term, Bailey left Missouri’s top law enforcement post to join Patel at the FBI.

He became co-deputy director, a position that marked the first time in the FBI’s history that the bureau had two people sharing the role. Bailey initially served alongside Dan Bongino and later alongside Christopher Raia after Bongino left the bureau.

Despite the sudden resignations, Bailey described his time at the FBI positively when asked by ABC 17 News how the unusual co-deputy director arrangement worked.

“That was great. Look, there’s enough work to be done for everybody and rooting out the deep state, implementing the president’s policy objectives. That takes hard work, dedication, tireless effort, and so plenty of work to go around,” Bailey said.

During his roughly one-year tenure, Bailey was involved in several high-profile operations, including “Operation VIPER,” a federal effort targeting violent crime in St. Louis that resulted in 91 arrests.

He was also involved in a January operation in Fulton County, Georgia, where federal agents searched the county’s main election facility in Union City for records related to the 2020 presidential election. Bailey had been overseeing election-related investigations at the FBI.

During Tuesday’s speech, Bailey said the FBI increased its number of voter fraud investigations by 500% during his time at the bureau.

“During my time at the FBI, proud of the work we did to make sure that America’s elections are secure so that our constitutional right to vote isn’t silenced by criminal behavior elsewhere,” Bailey told ABC 17 News. “There’s been numerous prosecute investigations leading to arrest and prosecution. And I refer you to the FBI’s Twitter feed or press releases on those.”

Bailey joined the FBI when there was tension surrounding the department regarding the release of the Epstein Files. ABC 17 News asked Bailey if he would had any regrets about how the FBI handled it. 

“That all happened before I took office. It was largely concluded. It’s not an issue I ever dealt with, but what I tell you what I would tell you is this, I’m always going to stand up for justice for victims. I think public transparency is important,” Bailey said. “As Missouri attorney general, I enforce the sunshine law. And sometimes you have to do that against friends. Sometimes you have to do that against municipalities that are trying to do the right thing but get it wrong. And so transparency is always important in maintaining and restoring public trust in public institutions.” 

Bailey also spoke about his support for Amendment 3 — which would reinstate an abortion ban in the state — and the personal experience that helped shape his strong anti-abortion stance. Bailey’s wife became pregnant in 2018. Bailey said doctors told the couple during their first ultrasound that the baby would not survive.

“We named her Grace because by the grace of God, I got to hold her for one hour, one hour before the good Lord took her home. But that hour I got to spend with my daughter taught me that all life has value. Period. I will never surrender, never retreat, as a pro-life advocate. Amendment three is a battle we have to win. It’s not the final battle in this fight. It’s not going to win the war in total, but it’s a critical battle that we can’t afford to lose. We have to win,” Bailey said during the speech.

When asked about his future plans during a media scrum, Bailey reiterated that he wants to spend more time with his children. Asked what he plans to do next in Missouri, Bailey said his focus is on Amendment 3 and spending time with his family.

The Columbia Pachyderm Club event also featured other Missouri political figures and candidates, including Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, representatives of State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick, state Rep. John Martin and Boone County associate circuit judge candidate James Egan.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man accused of killing his wife and leaving the body at a Kingdom City hotel dumpster appeared in court on Tuesday.

Jonathan Guthrie Houston, 44, is charged in Callaway County with first-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping. He is being held at the Callaway County Jail without bond.

Houston is accused of killing his wife of 17 years in late 2025. He allegedly admitted to law enforcement that he killed the woman after one of his children called authorities on Sunday. He allegedly dumped the woman’s body in a dumpster after killing her, court documents claim.

A hearing was held on Tuesday and Houston appeared without counsel, court filings show. He is applying for a public defender and a bond appearance hearing was scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13.

The Department of Corrections confirmed in an email that Houston have worked as a probation and parole officer in Columbia from 2018-21, and then worked as a case manager at Jefferson City Correctional Center from December 2023-October 2024.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man was arrested on Tuesday after Columbia police claim he walked around the MKT Trail while he was nude.

Draquawn Jennings, 33, of Columbia, was arrested on suspicion of four counts of sexual misconduct, according to a Tuesday evening social media post from the Columbia Police Department.

Police write that it had received five separate reports of a nude man walking on the MKT trail since May 11.

CPD wrote that it found Jennings’ vehicle Tuesday in the 800 block of Stadium Boulevard near the trail. The department says Flock cameras were used to find the vehicle and arrest Jennings.

Charges were not filed on Casenet as of Tuesday evening. He is currently listed on the Boone County Jail roster with a $10,000 bond.

Check back for updates.

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Stephi Smith

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Jefferson City has issued about 32% more expired-meter parking tickets this year after hiring a private company to manage the city’s parking operations.

The Jefferson City Council hired PCI Municipal Services last year to take over parking operations and management under a five-year, $4.8 million contract. The change also brought new parking enforcement procedures to the city.

In January, the council approved increasing parking fines from as low as $6 to $25. The new fines went into effect Feb. 1.

The council then voted in August to gradually increase parking rates. Beginning Sept. 1, all hourly metered parking increased to $1 per hour.

Rates will increase each September until 2030, when premium parking spaces (those closest to the Capitol) will cost $2.10 per hour and non-premium spaces will cost $1.10 per hour.

Between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, the city reported $186,465 in revenue from expired-meter parking tickets.

The city issued 663 expired-meter tickets in January, generating $8,888 in revenue. In March, the city issued 994 tickets and collected $23,053. The city reported issuing 6,355 expired-meter tickets between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30 this year. During the same period last year, the city issued 4,790 tickets.

According to PCI Municipal Services’ website, parking ticket appeals must be submitted online at ParkJCMO.com within 21 days of receiving a citation.

PCI’s initial proposal to the city called for three full-time and three part-time employees to handle parking operations and enforcement.

Gus Wagner, a Jefferson City resident and owner of The Rocket Group at 101 E. High St., said the new parking fees put Jefferson City in line with other similar-sized communities.

“Our parking fees and parking fines had been so affordable for decades. And this is … a catch-up to even us out with other communities, not just across Mid-Missouri but across the nation,” Wagner said.

Wagner also said he believes there is plenty of available parking in downtown Jefferson City. He noted parking is free after 5 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends. Parking in the 100 and 200 blocks of East High Street is also free for 90 minutes.

Jefferson City Ward 2 Councilman Mike Lester said he’s heard downtown business owners complain about the new parking fines.

Lester said some owners have expressed concerns that fewer customers will visit their stores to avoid a parking ticket.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A survey conducted by the City of Columbia about road safety on Business Loop 70 showed pedestrians feel unsafe on the road.

In fact, no one in the survey wrote that they felt safe on the business loop as a pedestrian or cyclist.

The city in 2025 approved a $2.1 million study of Business Loop 70 from  Stadium Boulevard to Eastland Circle. Business Loop 70 is maintained by Missouri Department of Transportation.

The online survey for the Road Safety Audit was released Oct. 8, 2025, and it received 156 responses between online and paper copies.

More than 60% of respondents claimed they felt “a little unsafe” or “very unsafe” while driving or riding in a vehicle on the road. Nearly half of people who responded felt “very unsafe” while biking and at least 20% felt “a little unsafe” during the same activity.

When asked about walking, no one again claimed to feel safe on the Business Loop. Nearly 60% felt “very unsafe” and another significant number of respondents felt “a little unsafe.”

A presentation for the Road Safety Audit says “No one feels safe walking or biking” and it leads to people feeling discouraged from visiting businesses.

Top concerns for respondents included distracted drivers, lack of pedestrian facilities (such as sidewalks, cross walks and lighting), cross the street as a pedestrian or cyclists, cars speeding and congestion during rush hours.

Hickman High School needs

The area around Hickman High School was a noted focus in the audit and presentation.

“We need to start thinking of the area around Hickman as a high pedestrian area with different needs,” the presentation says. “The primary walking routes to Hickman, and from Hickman to nearby restaurants, desperately need pedestrian improvements.”

Information from students were gathered during stakeholder meetings, the audit says. One student noted feeling unsafe because of speeding cars, while others claimed they did not feel safe “because cars do not always yield to pedestrians even when the walk sign is on.”

Hickman students regularly venture out to the Business Loop for lunch.

“A popular destination is Subway and there is no safe connection to get from the campus to Subway. The students requested a crosswalk to Subway at 7th Street,” the audit says.

The top-four issues for Hickman stakeholders included a lack of pedestrian facilities for students who won’t qualify for bus services, parents not understanding or following the school’s pick-up traffic circulation procedures, the lack of being able to make a left-turn onto southbound Providence Road from the driveways on the west side of the school and students feeling it is safer to cross the Business Loop mid-block than at the intersection.

The audit says these findings will be presented to the council during a 2027 work session.

Road Safety Audit PresentationDownload I-70 Business Loop RSA Report FINAL 08.20.26Download

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia Public Schools is among the five school districts in the state that is partnering with the University of Missouri for early college direct admission, MU announced in a Tuesday press release.

The program “guarantees admission to qualifying students” before their senior year of high school, the release says. Partner school districts include CPS, Farmington School District, Lee’s Summit R-7 School District, Liberty Public Schools and North Kansas City Schools.

Students in early college programs in those districts can qualify for guaranteed admission if they have at least a 3.0 GPA and complete at least 12 college credit hours by the end of their junior year of high school, the release says.

Qualifying students will not have to submit a traditional application or pay an application fee and will be notified of their admission “no later than” Aug. 1 heading into their senior year, the release says.

The release also says students who complete an associate of arts degree before enrolling at MU “will have satisfied the university’s general education requirements, allowing them to move more quickly into coursework associated with their chosen major.” Other associate degrees will have their coursework evaluated toward “applicable Mizzou degree requirements,” according to the release.

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