Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia Fire Department held a demonstration on turkey safety Wednesday at its training academy on Big Bear Boulevard.

Thanksgiving is next week and firefighters showed the dangers of improperly frying a turkey.

According to the National Fire Protection Agency, five people die each year and dozens more are injured in accidents linked to turkey frying. 

“So if you do decide to fry a turkey this year, just remember to be safe. Don’t fry in your garage. Move the turkey out away from the structure, and again, make sure it’s thawed,” Assistant Fire Marshal Colin Wright said.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Public Service Commission has set an intervention deadline of Dec. 12 for a certificate of need and necessity that was requested by Ameren to build a 28-mile transmission line in Montgomery and Callaway counties.

The release says Ameren believes the transmission line “is necessary to connect the Grain Belt Express LLC’s Tiger Connector transmission line to the Burns substation, thereby fulfilling Ameren Missouri’s obligation to facilitate the interconnection of the interstate transmission line into the existing transmission system.”

Applications to intervene and participate must be filed with the Secretary of the Missouri Public Service Commission, P.O. Box 360, Jefferson City, Mo. 65102-0360, or by using the Commission’s Electronic Filing and Information System at psc.mo.gov, according to the release.

The release says residents wishing to comment can contact either the Office of the Public Counsel (Governor Office Building, 200 Madison Street, Suite 650, P.O. Box 2230, Jefferson City, Mo. 65102-2230, telephone 866-922-2959, email mopco@opc.mo.gov) or the Public Service Commission Staff (P.O. Box 360, Jefferson City, Mo. 65102, telephone 800-392-4211, email pscinfo@psc.mo.gov).

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Two people have been charged in connection with a burglary that occurred last month in Centralia that resulted in roughly $9,000 worth of items being stolen.

Chase Wyatt, 39, of Centralia, was charged with stealing more than $750. He was also charged in another case on Thursday with passing a bad check. He is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. An initial court appearance was held on Wednesday.  He has a confined docket hearing scheduled for 1 p.m. Thursday, while a preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 30.

Denver Robb, 39, of Centralia, was charged with two counts of receiving stolen property and one count of drug possession. He is also being held at the jail without bond. A confined docket hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday and a preliminary hearing is set for 9 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 18.

The probable cause statement says police were called on Oct. 29 to a Centralia home after $9,000 worth of items were stolen, including guitars, amplifiers, knives and a camera.

The victim in the case told law enforcement that he saw several of the stolen knives on Nov. 4 at Tiger Pawn in Mexico, Missouri, the statement says. A ticket for the sale showed Wyatt sold the knives on Oct. 30.

Police used LeadsOnline to determine Wyatt allegedly sold a camera in Lee’s Summit, the statement says.

Robb was arrested on Nov. 7 and allegedly told police that he sold stolen property with Wyatt at a Guitar Center in Lee’s Summit, the statement says. Police also found amps and other stolen musical gear at Robb’s residence, court documents say. The Guitar Center location confirmed to police that Wyatt sold them three guitars and two amps on Oct. 31, the statement says.

A court document for another individual in the jail mentions Wyatt in a separate burglary case.

Cinda Smith, 43, of Hallsville, was charged with second-degree burglary and stealing a gun. She is being held at the jail on a $20,000 bond.

A probable cause statement says a Centralia homeowner reported to police on March 20 that 43 guns were stolen from his home between Feb. 10-14.

Police wrote that Wyatt’s phone was examined and a conversation about the alleged burglary, including photographs, occurred on Feb. 13. Photos of stolen guns were also observed by police and additional messages allegedly showed plans to sell them, the statement says.

Police eventually found a storage unit on Nov. 5 that contained stolen property that was identified by the owner, the statement says. Additional photos of Smith were found in the unit, along with items that had her name listed, court documents say.

Cinda Smith/Boone County Sheriff’s Office

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Nia Hinson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia’s leader of the Office of Violence Prevention D’Markus Thomas-Brown is hoping to offer a contract aimed at deescalating situations on public transit in the city to a nonprofit organization.

According to Thomas-Brown, his office plans to award the $99,840 contract to Powerhouse Community Development. The office was considering two liaisons for public transit in the city, after receiving reports of fights, threats and drunk passengers on city buses.

Thomas-Brown said his office had been having discussions about the issue since May.

The liaisons are trained in deescalation and would work toward offering peer support, life coaching and have an understanding of the services individuals can go to if they’re in need of help. Thomas-Brown said he sees the liaisons helping those who are riding the bus to help keep them safe, as well as bus drivers.

“Also being an intermediary for the bus driver so that the bus driver can focus on driving,” Thomas-Brown said. “They didn’t sign up to be the driver and a social worker or a driver in a deescalation element or helping people transition to services.”

Thomas-Brown said his office did not want to hire within its own office, but rather partner with a community based organization that had the ability to hire and offer the appropriate services. He hopes that organization can be Powerhouse.

“They had the training that was requested, the HEAT (Habilitation, Empowerment, Accountability and Therapy) training, certified peer specialist deescalation training, trauma-informed and mental health specialized training, being able to walk into a situation that’s not going to escalate but actually meet the person where they’re at when it comes to transit,” Thomas-Brown said.

The liaisons will be on six routes, according to Thomas-Brown.

Devon Harmon — a Columbia resident who rides the bus frequently to and from work — said he’s witnessed arguing and commotion on buses. He thinks the liaisons could be a positive thing, if they work toward engaging with passengers.

“I think it would be beneficial if it was more interaction, like people having conversations about things…there’s nothing wrong with talking to somebody that you’ve never met before.”

The Columbia City Council still has to approve the funding. The council will have their first read of the item during its Dec. 1 meeting, according to Thomas-Brown.

Office of Violence Prevention requests $1.8 million from DOJ

Thomas-Brown’s office is asking the Department of Justice for $1.8 million to help build out some of its collaborative efforts.

Thomas-Brown said he applied for the grant earlier this month, though it isn’t clear when the city will know if it’s been awarded the money. The office is looking to hire three new people with the funding, if approved, according to Thomas-Brown.

Those hires would include a community violence coordinator, as well as two community outreach supervisors. Thomas-Brown said the move would also include sending those hired to conferences to further their learning and engagement into community violence intervention initiatives.

The community violence coordinator would be tasked with being a collaborative partner with community-based organizations. Thomas-Brown said they would work toward filling gaps and also work closely with NOCAP groups in the community.

“That person will also help be an extension to community-based organizations, or those who want to start programs that are really in that space of where there are gaps for programming and lend the support of the Office of Violence Prevention,” Thomas-Brown said.

The two community outreach supervisors’ duties would include building street outreach and responses and help community-based organizations that don’t have the time or resources to build a rapid response team. Thomas-Brown said he intends to have one person focused on adults, while the other’s focus would shift toward youth in the community.

The two would also work toward building partnership with the city’s Project Management Office, which helps with data collection.

“We also have funding to partner with a liaison for the police department. We want an individual who’s able to be that intermediary between the Office of Violence Prevention and the police department, especially when we’re talking about focused deterrence,” Thomas-Brown said. “The desire in my eyes is, and it’ll be worked out with (Police Chief Jill Schlude) is that they could be housed in the police department as a delegated liaison to some of the community initiatives we’re doing.”

Thomas-Brown said in accepting the position, it was always his vision to expand the office. He says a one-person office is unsustainable and a “dying” office that isn’t able to implement everything that’s needed.

“So, that will give me the ability to be more out front, hand holding with different establishments and looking at the place of where we can give further funding into our CBOS and things like that to be able to actually look at strategy and vision and moving us forward in the intervention prevention space,” Thomas-Brown said.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man from California, Missouri, was charged in two separate cases on Wednesday.

Addison Dunafon was charged with first-degree child molestation in one case and tampering with a victim in a felony prosecution in another.

A no-bond warrant was issued in the child molestation case. He was also charged earlier this year in Moniteau County with tampering with a motor vehicle and he has a hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 16 in that case.

The probable cause statement in the tampering with a victim case says Dunafon called the victim in the car theft case and told them to not show up to court and drop the charges. He allegedly called the victim from the jail and law enforcement reviewed a recording of the phone call.

The child molestation case court document says law enforcement was contacted on Sept. 26 about a sexual assault involving a child that occurred between June through August 2024. The victim told law enforcement details about the alleged assault on Oct. 1.

Dunafon was allegedly asked about the assault on Oct. 3 while he was detained in the jail and he denied the allegations, court documents say.

He was also charged earlier this year with misdemeanor second-degree harassment and misdemeanor resisting arrest.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The top floors of two downtown Columbia parking garages will close for the winter next week.

Beginning at 8 a.m. Monday, the top floors of the Fifth and Walnut Parking Garage and the Short Street Parking Garage will be closed to all traffic and parking, according to a Wednesday press release from the City of Columbia.

They are expected to fully reopen Monday, March 23, 2026, weather permitting, the release says. The tops of both garages close each winter to make it easier on staff to “manage snow events more effectively,” the release says.

Chains and cones will block access to the top floors.

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Ryan Shiner

EDIT: This article has been corrected.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The state is looking to revoked the POST license of a former Centralia police officer who is charged with several felonies.

Curtis Higby, of Mexico, Missouri, was charged earlier this year in Audrain County with two counts of first-degree domestic assault, a count of armed criminal action, tampering with evidence, third-degree domestic assault and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon.

Court documents in previous reporting say Higby repeatedly assaulted a woman from Feb. 1-Aug. 9.

Higby was fired from the Centralia Police Department on the day of his arrest. A jury trial is scheduled to begin 8:30 a.m. Monday, Dec. 15.

A Peace Officer Standards and Training Program license is required in order to become a law enforcement officer in Missouri. The request to revoke Higby’s POST license was filed on Friday.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman was killed in a crash Tuesday night in at the 150-mile marker of eastbound Interstate 44 in Pulaski County, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says a 2012 Dodge Ram – driven by the 48-year-old Lebanon, Missouri, woman – was stopped in the roadway and was rear-ended by 2017 Volvo semi-truck that was driven by a 42-year-old St. Louis man.

The semi went off the right side of the road and the Dodge went off the left side, the report says. The Dodge hit the cable barrier and ejected the woman, the report says. She was pronounced dead at the scene and was brought to Waynesville Memorial Chapel.

The woman was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash, the report says. The man wore a seatbelt and had no reported injuries. The Dodge was totaled, while the semi had moderate damage, according to the report.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Central Missouri Humane Society is out of space to take in new dogs after it saw an influx of canines from a Columbia animal abuse case.

Last week, dog breeder Melissa Sanders, 26, was charged with three counts of felony animal abuse and 15 counts of misdemeanor animal abuse. Sanders runs Magnum Opus German Shepherds and a large number of dogs were found either dead or in poor condition when officers served a search warrant.

CMHS wrote on its social media that it is out of space to take in new dogs and that they are holding several of the dogs until the case is over. A CMHS spokesperson wrote in an email that the dogs were saved from Sanders’ business.

“Recently, we took in a large group of dogs that have to be held until their court case is over. This has significantly reduced the number of open kennels at CMHS, and we now need your help. We are out of space, and we desperately need dogs to leave so we can continue helping the pups of Boone County!” the social media post says.

Michelle Casey, of CMHS, wrote in an email that the shelter has more than 30 dogs available for foster care, including four from Sanders’ case. Some other dogs from the case have been placed in foster homes, Casey wrote.

Information about fostering or adoption can be found on CMHS’ website and social media.

Sanders is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. A confined docket hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m. Thursday and a preliminary hearing is set for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 30.

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Marie Moyer

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri Supreme Court convened Wednesday to hear arguments on two appeals related to voter laws.

Both suits were filed by the NAACP and League of Women Voters in 2022 following the passage of House Bill No. 1878, which changed state rules related to elections, including sections dealing with voter registration, absentee voting and voter identification.

The first suit has the NAACP and League of Women Voters appealing a previous ruling in favor of the state that deemed HB 1878 was constitutional. One of HB 1878’s rules requires voters to provide a current government-issued photo ID at the polls, making alternative IDs such as a Missouri student ID, voter registration cards, and utility or bank statements, which were previously accepted, invalid.

Voters who show up on Election Day without a valid photo ID can only cast a provisional ballot, which will count if they return later that day with proper ID or if their signature matches the one on file. But in-person absentee voters who lack a valid ID are not allowed to cast a provisional ballot at all.

The groups argued that the tighter restrictions on voter IDs violated the Missouri Constitution’s equal protection clause, which guarantees a right to vote, claiming several Missouri voters in 2022 sued the state after having issues getting a valid ID, either due to disabilities or other difficulties.

“These burdens can be financial, they can be bureaucratic in nature, they can be simply practical hurdles, such as the difficulties for disabled Missourians to get into a license office, the cost and time of child care, or even missed work to gather the documents,” Representative for the Missouri NAACP and League of Women Voters of Missouri Jason Orr said.

The state won the initial ruling, arguing that the voters who sued with the groups were ultimately able to vote, that provisional ballots are commonly counted and that potential voters can easily access state resources to get a valid ID.

“The law is now tremendously easy to comply with because voters can easily obtain free IDs, join the permanently disabled voters list, or cast provisional ballots — which are almost always counted,” according to the State’s brief.

During a press conference following the hearing, Attorney General Catherine Hanaway voiced support for the state’s voter ID laws.

“The goal here is to make sure that every Missourian who wants to vote gets to vote, but any Missouri and or anyone from outside Missouri who wants to cheat can’t cheat,” Hanaway said.

The second suit has the state appealing a court ruling in favor of the NAACP and League of Women Voters. House Bill No. 1878 tightened rules surrounding people who solicit voter registrations.

This included ending payment for solicitors and requiring solicitors to be at least 18 years old and registered Missouri voters. The rule also banned solicitors from encouraging voters to get an absentee ballot application by making the action a Class 1 election offense that could result in jail time.

The groups argued that the statute’s use of the term “solicitor” is overly broad, potentially applying to anyone who encourages or assists with voter registration. They argued that this vagueness exposes volunteers to criminal penalties and places unconstitutional restrictions on political speech.

“Solicitation is characteristically intertwined informative and persuasive speech in the reality that without solicitation, the flow of such information and advocacy would likely cease,” Representative for the Missouri NAACP and League of Women Voters of Missouri Kristen Mulvey said.

The state argues that the definition of “solicitor” in the statute only applies to someone who provides voters with registration or absentee-ballot applications and then collects the completed documents for submission to a local election.

“The type of solicitation that it is talking about is activity that involves procuring applications,” Representative for the state Michael Patton said. “The court can remove nearly all of the harms that the plaintiffs allege simply by issuing an authoritative interpretation of solicit and challenge statutes and in reading the challenged statutes narrowly.”

Several judges pushed back against the state’s argument, saying the definition is too narrow.

“Don’t you think the trial court’s reading of the solicited sessions is fair? I mean, if someone comes knocking on my door and wants to put gutters up and I decide, ‘no, I don’t want gutters,’ would we consider that solicitation?” Chief Justice Brent Powell said.

‘I’m just saying the definition of solicit is a request which may result in the receipt of what’s being solicited, but it doesn’t have to,” Judge Paul Wilson said. “Should we apply that in soliciting sex cases? That if it doesn’t result in a completed transaction, then it isn’t a crime?”

The Missouri Supreme Court has not yet ruled on either appeal.

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