KOMU-TV (Columbia, MO)

COLUMBIA - Leaders in Columbia gathered Friday morning, with public safety at the top of the agenda. Columbia City Council, county commission, chamber of commerce, Columbia Public Safety, Columbia Police Department, Columbia Fire Department and University of Missouri officials all met to discuss safety in Columbia. Leaders said overall city-wide crime is down. However, there is an increase driven by lower-level offenses in the downtown area.

COLUMBIA - A Rock Bridge Elementary student was found with a BB gun in their backpack Thursday, according to an email from Columbia Public Schools that was sent to families of impacted students. According to the district, administration was alerted to the issue after the student showed the gun to another student shortly before dismissal. The gun was taken away from the student.

Columbia residents may soon be asked to vote on a proposed 1% sales tax dedicated to police and fire department funding, according to a city council memo ahead of its Monday meeting. City staff have drafted an ordinance and if approved by the council, the measure would be placed on the August 2026 ballot. If passed, revenue from the proposed tax would be placed into a newly created public safety fund.

COLUMBIA — Leaders in Columbia gathered Friday morning with public safety at the top of the agenda. Columbia City Council, Boone County Commission, Columbia Chamber of Commerce, Columbia Public Schools, Columbia Police Department, Columbia Fire Department and University of Missouri officials all met to discuss safety in Columbia. Leaders said overall city-wide crime is down. However, there is an increase driven by lower-level offenses in the downtown area.

A 91-year-old Fulton man was killed and a 67-year-old Auxvasse man was injured in a crash with a freightliner Wednesday morning in Callaway County, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report. The crash occurred around 11:55 a.m. on County Road 2002 near U.S. 54, according to the crash report. A Ford Fusion hit the front of a freightliner, causing the Ford Fusion to travel to the right side of the roadway and overturn.

A St. Louis man was arrested after allegedly destroying books in a "little library" and gaining access to a van Wednesday night in Columbia. Gene V. Meegan was arrested on charges of second-degree burglary and second-degree property damage, according to online court documents. According to court documents, Meegan was allegedly yelling and throwing books from the little library in someone's front yard. The rain at the time heavily damaged the books.

COLUMBIA — Among other topics discussed at Thursday's University of Missouri Faculty Council meeting was the possibility of suspending operations of the Inclusion, Diversity and Equity subcommittee on the council. Going into the meeting, the council's agenda included plans to rename the subcommittee, but after debate among council members, they decided to table renaming the subcommittee as well as the possibility of suspending its operations.

COLUMBIA — Drivers along Interstate 70 in mid-Missouri are navigating closures and shifting traffic patterns, but early signs from the state’s infrastructure project suggest the disruptions might not be as severe as some feared.

A jury trial for Quatavia Givens, a first-degree murder suspect, is being moved to Pulaski County, according to online court documents. Givens is currently charged with first-degree murder, child abuse, first-degree endangering of a child and abandonment of a body in relation to the death of 4-year-old Darnell Gray in 2018. Initially, the judge decided in October 2025 that the jury would be from Pulaski County, while the trial would be conducted in Cole County.

A deck collapse in Lake Ozark on Wednesday night left six people injured. The Lake Ozark Fire Protection District was dispatched to a multifamily residence at 8:37 p.m., according to a LOFPD news release. The first units to arrive found an entrance walkway had collapsed with six people on it. The Fire District stabilized the collapse and treated injuries.