Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick released his audit of Morgan County on Thursday and gave it a “fair” rating.

“The good news is the county doesn’t show any signs of excessive waste or fraud, but it does have several areas lacking controls and procedures, which can lead to inefficiency and increase the possibility that fraudulent activity could occur,” Fitzpatrick wrote in a press release.

Among possible issues included “mid-term salary increases” for its sheriff totaling $37,437 as of 2024, the report says. Fitzpatrick claims the salary increases violated the Missouri Constitution.

The report shows the county responded, saying it disagreed with Fitzpatrick’s assertion and cited a Cole County court case that it believes supports its decision to give the raise. Fitzpatrick in the report argued that the case did not address sheriff pay.

Another claim in the report accused the county commission of not adequately monitoring its “budget-to-actual receipts and disbursements.”

“Actual disbursements exceeded the county’s budgeted disbursements by nearly $3 million for the year ended December 31, 2024,” the report says.

The county responded in the report saying, “At the beginning of 2026 during the budget process, the Morgan County Commissioners decided they would begin doing a mid-year budget review and then monthly after that.”

Morgan County auditDownload

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A lawsuit was filed on Thursday in federal court that challenges Missouri’s recently passed hemp restrictions.

Gov. Mike Kehoe on April 23 signed House Bill 2641 into law, which effectively banned the sale of THC seltzers and other intoxicating hemp products at convenience stores, bars and restaurants. It would require those products to be sold at licensed dispensaries.

It also reclassified certain products, including some sold as CBD, as marijuana if they meet specific criteria, subjecting them to stricter oversight.

The law was met with pushback from the Missouri Hemp Trade Association, who filed the lawsuit against the state in the Western District Court of Missouri, along with Lifted Liquids LLC and MNG 2005 Inc.

The petition accuses the law of violating the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, violating the dormant commerce clause and claims it is preempted by the Farm Bill.

The plaintiffs are seeking for a judgement that declares the law unconstitutional.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia Parks and Recreation announced in a Thursday social media post that Albert-Oakland Pool will be closed until Saturday.

The post says maintenance staff found a “cracked fitting in the pump room this morning. This means that the water filtration system is not working properly.”

The announcement comes after the Parks and Rec department announced on Wednesday that the pool will be closed on Mondays for the rest of the summer.

Renovations are planned for after the summer season. The pool was also closed for four days last month after issues arose with its filtration system.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A lawyer who worked for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has filed a lawsuit against its commissioner.

Lindsey Phoenix, of Columbia, filed a lawsuit against Education Commissioner Karla Eslinger on Monday, claiming retaliatory termination and that her First Amendment rights were violated.

The petition alleges that after the shooting of divisive political commentator Charlie Kirk, Phoenix shared a meme to her private Instagram story on Sept. 10, 2025, “that read something to the effect of, ‘delulu is no longer the solulu. what we need is revolulu. with a side of assassinunu.’”

The lawsuit claims that prior to starting her role as working as legal counsel for DESE, Phoenix was trained on the state’s social media policy.

“The training included how a state employee could safely exercise their First Amendment rights on social media as a private citizen without jeopardizing their public employment,” court documents allege. “As part of the training, Plaintiff was encouraged and told to inform state employees that they could express themselves however they wished on social media as long as they were not representing themselves as part of the agency or State of Missouri.

“The general rule for social media use is that a state employee is free to post their political opinions as long as they are not representing themselves as speaking or representing the State of Missouri,” the petition alleges.

The petition says Phoenix’s account was set to private settings and that her profile did not identify herself as an employee of the state.

“The only group she identifies as explicitly being a member of in her profile is as a ‘full-time Swiftie,’” the petition alleges.

The lawsuit then claims “an acquaintance from high school” reported the meme to Eslinger. The petition alleges that Phoenix’s direct supervisor told her that she was not in violation of the policy and that Eslinger was out of town when the complaint came in.

Phoenix was then fired on Sept. 17, 2025, and was told it was not for performance issues, the statement says.

Following the Kirk killing, a number of people were fired or disciplined over their social media posts mostly around Kirk’s statements, which included a suspension of Hallsville School District employees. National reports claimed several people were targeted by an anonymous doxing website.

Recently, national outlets have reported that a number of the fired employees were getting paid out by their former employers after filing First Amendment retaliation lawsuits. Additionally, a retired police officer in Tennessee who was reportedly jailed over a Charlie Kirk meme was paid $835,000 in an unlawful incarceration case.

DESE wrote in an email to ABC 17 News that it does not comment on pending legal issues.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Holts Summit man was charged with two felonies after he was accused of sexually abusing a child on July 13 in Cole County.

Fernando Yordi, 23, was charged with first-degree statutory rape of a person younger than 14 years old and first-degree sexual abuse of a victim younger than 14 years old. He is being held at the Cole County Jail without bond. A court date has not been set.

The probable cause statement says deputies were called to a Cole County residence at 9:40 p.m. July 13. The caller allegedly told law enforcement that their 13-year-old friend told them on social media that Yordi had pressured them into drinking alcohol and having sex.

When deputies arrived, “both of the friends said that the victim told them that a 20 something year old male Hispanic male had sex with her while at this residence,” court documents say. The mother of the friends allegedly told law enforcement that there was about an hour where they could not find the victim, the statement says.

The child then emerged from the woods, as did Yordi minutes later, the statement says. The next day, law enforcement spoke with the victim, who described the assault, the statement says.

The deputy wrote in the statement that he learned Yordi “made statements to his girlfriend and his wife about something happening” at the residence and left the state with his wife. Deputies contacted Yordi’s wife and Yordi allegedly agreed to return “after a lengthy conversation,” court documents say.

Yordi eventually admitted to having a sexual encounter with the child, but alleged the victim told him she was 18 years old, court documents say.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman was charged with multiple felonies after she and other suspects allegedly broke into a residence on Whitegate Drive on Wednesday and pepper-sprayed a victim.

La’Jaya Robinson, 20, was charged with first-degree burglary, second-degree robbery, second-degree assault and third-degree assault. She is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. A court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says police were called on Wednesday to Columbia Crossing Apartments and found a woman who was hit with pepper spray. The victim identified Robinson and claimed that she and three other people were in her apartment, hit her with pepper spray, assaulted her and took her iPhone. The other suspects were not named in the probable cause statement.

Police recognized Robinson’s name and went to her residence on Claudell Lane and a standoff ensued. Robinson’s mother allegedly tried to ask police to leave during the encounter, the statement says.

Robinson eventually walked out of the residence and admitted to entering the victim’s residence through a back door that was unlocked, court documents say. She also admitted that the victim was pepper-sprayed and assaulted, the statement says. She allegedly went to the victim’s residence “about a past altercation,” court documents say.

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Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

In about a week, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has reported that cases of cyclosporiasis in Missouri has nearly doubled from 43 to 80.

“There are more cases across the country than we usually see in an entire year,” DHSS said in a Facebook Post Thursday.

The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health also stated on Thursday that cases in the county have risen from 9 cases on Wednesday to 13 on Thursday.

“The current indication is that these cases were acquired locally; however, further analysis will be required,” PHHS spokesman Austin Krohn said in a statement on Thursday.

John Macon, the owner of Smash and Dash Grill, reported that sales were down by around 50% Thursday. He adds the food truck is also temporarily removing lettuce from its burgers.

 “Everybody that’s come up has said ‘no lettuce on our sandwich.'” Macon said. “In fact, we added a sign that said we don’t have lettuce simply because everybody was coming up and saying, ‘no, lettuce on our sandwich.'”

According to DHSS, the Cyclospora parasite is spread through human waste.

“In the United States, we have very robust water treatment facilities; it would be unusual for raw sewage to make its way into say like a farm or an irrigation system,” DHSS epidemiologist Nathan Koffarnus said. “In some less developed countries, that is unfortunately much more common.”

Macon adds that while his products are at low risk, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

“While we wash all of our produce, we prep all of our produce, we get it local, much lower risk, we care about the customers enough, and that’s our that’s why we’re here, is because of the customers,” Macon said.

Cyclosporiasis is believed to be contracted through eating produce or water contaminated by the Cyclospora parasite. Health officials say symptoms usually begin about a week after exposure and can include frequent diarrhea, dehydration from diarrhea, weight loss, bloating, nausea and fatigue. Less common symptoms include vomiting and a low-grade fever.

DHSS reports cyclosporiasis cases typically rise during the summer, but Missouri usually sees only about 15 around this time of year. The department also suspects that the attention to the parasite has increased the number of reports made.

Boone Health reported Wednesday that five people have been hospitalized due to the illness.

The Cole County Health Department wrote in a Thursday statement that it was not releasing its numbers just yet because “When case numbers are very small, releasing additional information may increase the risk of identifying an individual. Protecting patient confidentiality remains our priority, and we do not release information that could compromise an individual’s privacy.”

While some people have been seen online using vinegar to clean produce, health experts say the best way to kill the parasite is to cook produce at 158 degrees. It is also recommended to thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables, both local and imported, before eating

Krohn added that buying local could help reduce the risk, but still encourages produce to be washed.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri Task Force 1 has been activated by FEMA to deploy to San Antonio, Texas, to assist with a flood response, a Thursday press release from the Boone County Fire Protection District says.

The release says 45 members of TF-1 and more than 100,000 pounds of equipment will be sent.

TF-1 was deployed earlier this week to Sikeston for flooding in Missouri.

A date for which TF-1 will be sent to Texas was not listed in the release.

Check back for updates.

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Jazsmin Halliburton

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

There are multiple road and lane closures in Jefferson City Thursday, with some due to water mains and utility lines.

Crews implemented an emergency road closure Wednesday afternoon on W. High St. from Clay St. to Bolivar St. due to utility damage. Ameren is fixing the damaged pole and work is expected to be completed sometime Thursday.

W. McCarty St. between Berry St. and Brooks St. is closed due to a water main break, resulting in some damage. There is no current timeline for repairs.

Crews are set to close one lane in the 1000 block of W. High St. at 6 a.m. Thursday to replace a water line in the area. The work is expected to be complete and the lane to be reopened at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Leslie Blvd. from Chestnut and Rosevally Dr. is closed for repairs. Work is expected to be finished by the end of the day.

Message boards and signage will be in place to guide drivers through the affected areas; however, drivers are asked to find an alternate route.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Cases of cyclosporiasis have been reported in Boone County and it has led to hospitalizations at area hospitals.

Health officials in Boone County are still trying to determine if local cases are tied to the national outbreak that has been affecting Michigan and Ohio.  

Has the cyclosporiasis outbreak changed your spending habits at grocery stores? Let us know in the comments and in the poll.

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