Category: kmiz-local-news

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Fulton man has been charged with three felonies and three misdemeanors after he allegedly shot at an occupied car and pointed a gun at another person on Saturday night.

Lamar Scott Jr., 19, was charged with two counts of unlawful use of a weapon, one count of armed criminal action, misdemeanor fourth-degree assault, misdemeanor stealing and misdemeanor fourth-degree domestic assault.  

The probable cause statement alleges that Scott pointed a gun at one victim near a gas station on Chestnut Street. A second victim claimed that Scott tried to assault them in a church parking lot, the statement says. The victim allegedly then drove off with Scott’s car and Scott fired shots to get them to stop, the statement says.

Multiple victims claimed Scott said during a group phone call that someone was going to die that night, the statement says. Another victim alleged Scott tried to break into their home, the statement says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Sedalia police on Tuesday morning arrested a man in a “Scream” mask after a standoff.

Mario Wilson, of Sedalia, was charged with first-degree burglary and second-degree harassment, a misdemeanor. He was detained and is being held on a $15,000 bond. A mugshot was not immediately available. A court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says police were called to a residence after allegations of someone wearing a mask from the movie “Scream” had fired shots. Law enforcement arrived at the home at 12:43 a.m. and called out for residents to get out of the home, the statement says.

The victims were seen in a window of the home and officers were able to help them out of the window, the statement says. Police continued to give orders to Wilson, but he allegedly called dispatch and asked to negotiate, the statement says. Wilson eventually surrendered at 1:11 a.m., court documents say.

One of the victims allegedly told police that their RING camera had been giving them notifications throughout the day and they saw a man in a “Scream” mask, which startled her, the statement says.

The victim allegedly called a male friend to head over to the house and tell Wilson to leave, and Wilson allegedly ran to the backyard and climbed through a window to enter the house, the statement says. Prior to that, Wilson allegedly sent messages to the victim to let him in the home and she told him she would not, the statement says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A wrongful death lawsuit involving a Moniteau County crash was moved to Miller County on Tuesday.

The parents of Deborah Kay Coville filed a wrongful death lawsuit against John Kendrick and Moniteau County on Aug. 29 after Coville died from injuries she suffered in a crash on Aug. 5.

The petition alleges that Kendrick did not stop at a stop sign or yield to Coville’s Chevy Lumina as she drove eastbound on Lookout Trail. A Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report says the driver of the dump truck failed to yield to the Chevrolet.

Both drivers wore seatbelts in the crash, the report says. Coville was flown to University Hospital with serious injuries that day and later died on Aug. 12, the petition says.

Kendrick previously argued that because he is a public employee and is entitled to protection for “discretionary” acts. 

The date for the next hearing has not been announced.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A patient at the University of Missouri Psychiatric Center has been charged with a felony after he was accused of attacking a mental health technician on Saturday.

Michael Brown Jr. was charged with first-degree assault. He is not listed on the Boone County Jail’s online roster and a court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says the attack was caught on video and Brown allegedly attacked the victim while he was walking through the area with a television. After the victim was on the ground, he allegedly was kicked in the face multiple times.

The victim spoke with police at the emergency room of University Hospital, the statement says. Other patients allegedly wanted to watch a movie, the victim turned one on and Brown allegedly accused the victim of being racist and attacked him, the statement says.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Two 74-year-old people from Sturgeon had minor injuries after their vehicle hit a tractor-trailer near Centralia, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says the crash occurred on Route CC, west of Dinwiddie School Road. The report says the pair’s vehicle – a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox – was heading eastbound when it crossed the centerline and hit the towed unit of the 2016 Kenworth T680 that was heading in the opposite direction.

The Kenworth was driven by a 55-year-old man from Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, the report says. All parties in the crash wore seatbelts and the Wisconsin man had no reported injuries.

The people from Sturgeon were brought to University Hospital by ambulance, the report says. The Chevrolet was totaled, while the Kenworth had minor damage.

That portion of Route CC was closed for roughly an hour.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Tuesday is the first day potential candidates for the Columbia City Council elections can file to run and voters should expect to see some familiar names.

Ward 1 Councilwoman Valerie Carroll announced on her social media that she filed for her reelection bid on Monday. Ward 5 Councilman Don Waterman told ABC 17 News that he plans on filing for reelection, but does not plan to file on Monday.

Petitions and instructions will be available at Columbia City Hall from 8 a.m.-noon and 1-5 p.m. on weekdays, excluding holidays. The deadline to file is 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. Election Day is Tuesday, April 7, 2026.

Candidates must obtain at least 50 signatures from residents who reside in the ward and are registered voters, according to a press release released by the city last week.

Potential candidates must be qualified voters and residents of the ward they wish to represent, the release says. They must also not hold “lucrative public office or any lucrative position in the City government during their terms,” the release says.

Check back for updates.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at the entrance of the Boone County Courthouse in January pleaded guilty to two felonies on Tuesday.

Nicholas Walters, 39, of Columbia, pleaded guilty to arson and resisting arrest. He was originally charged with first-degree assault, first-degree arson, armed criminal action, resisting arrest and drug possession. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and will get credit for time served.

Court documents in previous reporting say Walters was seen on camera walking up to the courthouse with a glass jar that contained gasoline and paper. He threw the Molotov cocktail at the front entrance that caused “an eruption of fire” under the door, the statement says.

Another person exiting the building was almost set on fire and ran away as flames ignited, the statement says. That person stated in court documents that they smelled gasoline.

Walters allegedly admitted to making the incendiary object and asked police to tell the court he was sorry, court documents say. Police also found him with methamphetamine and a pipe.

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Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Leila Willmore says she was first alerted to AI-generated content of her son at the end of September. Since then, things have only continued to escalate.

“They were seeing Zachary in articles coming to their Facebook, like popping up one after the other,” Willmore said. “When I would try to look up the sources, all of them were fake. Not a single one was was real, but the information was accurate.”

The AI-generated content in question stems from September 2021, when Zachary Willmore was crowned Rock Bridge High Schools first male homecoming queen.

“It also made it sound like it had just happened and said breaking news with all this kind of sensationalized text in red and bold to get your attention,” Leila Willmore said.

Zachary Willmore said he thinks the AI-generated articles started after other posts were made celebrating the anniversary.

“At first it was pretty similar to the story,” Zachary said. “The first couple of articles that were put out about it were still saying that it was four years ago, then it changed to this year.”

Many of the posts have garnered thousands of likes, comments and shares. After she was first made aware, Leila Willmore said the posts stopped for about two weeks. However, they started popping up again, this time a new issue followed.

“This past week, the pictures are not him anymore. Many of them are really feminine versions of him,” she said. “The information in the article may be true and not mean still or anything, but the image is not true and it also didn’t happen just now.”

In 2021, Zachary’s win caused a swirl of controversy when he chose the title of queen instead of King. Following his crowning moment, Zachary Willmore at the time explained a social media poll was behind the decision. Today, Leila Willmore said the resurgence of the her son’s 2021 win has stirred up a new wave of backlash.

“I’ll be honest with you I try to protect myself from it, but I do hear that and see that,” Leila Willmore said. “The people who say those hateful things, they don’t know him. Not a single one of them know him or his heart and how kind he is.”

In an email to ABC 17 News, Columbia Public Schools spokeswoman Michelle Baumstark said the district has received some “disparaging messages and phone calls” on the issue, but none have been direct threats.

“Nearly all of the messages are coming from outside the district and some from even outside of Missouri. A few  have posed as parents, but upon further investigation are found to not be parents in the district,” Baumstark wrote.

Baumstark also said the images being spread are not real and altered by artificial intelligence.

“It seems the intent is to create discontent and to cause harm by sensationalizing the event and misrepresenting what actually happened,” Baumstark said.

Zachary Willmore said it’s not the hateful messages or comments that worry him, it’s the AI content.

“If AI did decide to mass report on a different issue and flood Facebook feeds with different types of stories it could lead to a mass misinformation,” Zachary Willmore said.

He’s also concerned by his high school and hometown being listed on some of the posts that are circulating.

“If someone really crazy saw my article and was that upset, I’m not even at that school anymore,” Zachary said. “Its like a misdirected hatred that is going to put people that’s not even me in danger.”

Leila Willmore said she has contacted the Columbia Police Department about the posts and articles on social media.

“They just said to report it to whatever the platform was to Facebook or whoever it was putting it out,” Leila said.

Zachary said he is considering taking legal action if the posts continue to get worse.

Now, Leila Willmore and her family are left with questions.

“Why is it happening? Why is it happening now? Who’s doing it? Is it a person? Is it just an algorithm?” Leila said. “It is really concerning and it blurs the lines of reality so that none of us now we’re all questioning what is real and what’s not real.”

Baumstark said the ability to recognize the use and abuse of AI technology is important as it continues to advance. She is also calling for accountability from social media platforms.

“It is also incumbent upon the platforms hosting the content to flag and identify such posts as AI-generated if they want to maintain the integrity of the platform or to filter out fake content that presented as truthful,” Baumstark said.

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Ryan Shiner

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man was charged with multiple felonies after he allegedly broke into a Jefferson City Police Department vehicle on Monday night.

Andrew Zemke, 29, of Jefferson City, was charged with two counts of second-degree burglary, one count of first-degree property damage and one count of misdemeanor unlawfully entering a motor vehicle. He is being held at the Cole County Jail without bond. A court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says an officer was called to another cop’s home in the 2100 block of Deer Trail for a reported theft and property damage. The officer saw the JCPD SUV with a broken window, along with a landscape block and shattered glass being behind the driver side door, the statement says.

An AR-15-style gun was locked inside the vehicle and the officer determined someone tried to steal it, but was unable to, the statement says. However, a 28-round magazine was missing, the statement says. Coins were also allegedly stolen from a cup holder.

A neighbor allegedly gave police video that showed Zemke walking toward the vehicle, the statement says. Additional video allegedly showed Zemke entering unlocked vehicle and checking the handles of other car doors, the statement says. Police found Zemke wearing the same clothes he was seen wearing on video, the statement says.

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Haley Swaino

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The City of Columbia is invited community members to learn about its snow removal process.

Part of the city’s new series of interactive sessions called Community Classroom, Tuesday afternoon’s session featured a presentation from city staff on how they approach snow removal.

Columbia Public Works engineering and operations manager Richard Stone, who is in charge of snow response on city streets, gave a presentation.

He said the department is more prepared for winter this year than in recent years.

“2022, as we were approaching winter, we had 17 vacancies and we were very concerned about that,” Stone said.

But after a hiring push and pay raises, a few years later, Stone said Columbia snow crews are nearly fully staffed with 45 workers and only four vacancies.

“There was a period of time this year where we were down one vacancy,” Stone said.

Crews will be using some new trucks this season, after the city decided to replace some of its aging snow removal equipment.

“We’ve got about 30 vehicles that we use for regular maintenance,” Stone said. “And then this year, November and January, we’re looking forward to to five new trucks coming in.”

When winter storms hit, Public Works’ primary focus is on maintaining heavily used and emergency routes first. Once those roads are cleared, the department will shift its focus to residential streets.

Like Jefferson City, Columbia works to clear roads to a “drivable” or “passable” level. This means that as long as a road is at least one car wide and can be driven on with a front-wheel drive vehicle, regardless of whether snow covers the roads, it is considered somewhat clear.

Snowplow drivers are responsible for specific sectors. Cleared sectors can be found on the city’s Street and Snow Priority Viewer.

Stone said third priority routes were added in 2017 as a way to reach deeper into neighborhoods. And right now, all routes are within about 1,000 feet of each other. He hopes to get that down to about 800.

“We do think with the south salt facility that we’re going to be able to get very close to that because we’ll have a little bit quicker response time for all of the community with that facility,” Stone said. “The entire community will benefit from that.”

Stone expects the south salt facility should be up and running by winter 2026-2027.

Tuesday’s meeting was held from noon to 1 p.m. in conference rooms 1A/1B of City Hall.

The Community Classroom series is hosted by the City’s Community Connectors program, which aims to foster dialogue and build trust between community members and the city government. Tuesday’s snow removal meeting was the third session.

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