COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
University of Missouri System President Mun Choi said Monday that crimes ranging from homeless trespassers on campus to gun violence in downtown Columbia have created a dangerous environment for citizens and students.
“What I’m hearing from individuals, whether that’s the business leaders or citizens, is that Columbia was not this way in the past,” Choi said. “There are people that say, ‘I’m not going to downtown, it’s just too dangerous,’ and that’s not the way it should be.”
Choi made the remarks at a news conference Monday morning after a Stephens College student died over the weekend from a shooting that also left two others hurt.
This is the third shooting incident during a MU Homecoming weekend in the last four years. In 2021, two people were shot, and in 2022, three people were shot, including an MU student.
“The leaders have to lead and acknowledge that there is an issue and find credible solutions. The Columbia Police Department is doing all they can. I have a lot of confidence in them and they must be supported,” Choi said.
Choi called on the City government to change its policies and practices that let people think they can commit crimes without consequences.
“There has to be severe repercussions so that criminals know that this region, the state of Missouri, takes its laws very seriously and that they will be held to account to the full extent of the law,” Choi said.
Choi said his call to action did not come from this weekend’s shooting, but a pattern of crimes that has continued to plague downtown Columbia.
“When parents send their students to a university, they want to know that they’re going to a university environment that is safe. We keep our campus very safe. We need to make sure that the downtown region and the rest of Columbia is safe as well,” Choi said.
Choi said University of Missouri Police Chief Brian Weimer would offer all available staff to patrol downtown on game days. Mayor Barbara Buffaloe wrote in an email to Choi over the weekend that CPD added eight officers to night patrols, a 20% increase in staffing since last summer.
“We’re going to maintain the safety on our campus and may require more overtime for our police officers who do an excellent job supporting the officers of CPD,” Choi said.
MUPD has responded to nine violent crimes on campus so far this year, and four victims were between the ages of 18 and 24, according to Missouri State Highway Patrol data. In 2024, MUPD responded to six violent crimes total. The data also shows that MUPD has arrested 10 people between the ages of 18 and 24 for violent crimes this year.
Choi said no new MUPD officers will be hired right now; instead, current officers will be reallocated until the department can hire and train new officers. Choi said he wants to keep the options for solutions open as preliminary discussions continue, but the need for a temporary solution is approaching as the Tigers’ next game on Oct. 11 nears.
“Whether it is changing the traffic pattern in the downtown during weekends, that is a possibility that we’re going to be exploring,” Choi said. “We’ll have a big game on Oct. 11, and we want to be able to prepare for that.”
Choi is working with Buffaloe to create a task force on crime that includes local and community leaders. He said that he and Weimer would be part of the task force. Choi said he had asked to meet with Buffaloe on Monday afternoon, but it’s not clear whether they did.
The last crime task force in the city was created over 10 years ago, in 2013. The task force researched for over a year before presenting its findings in 2014.
Those findings included four recommendations:
Make people aware of resources
Create safe spaces for youth
Create trust between law enforcement and the community
Hold high-risk offenders accountable
Choi said he has also shared his concerns with Gov. Mike Kehoe. Choi said Kehoe has promised him a meeting of local, university and business leaders to develop solutions.
In a statement to ABC 17 News, Kehoe’s office called public safety and cracking down on crime in Missouri communities his top priority.
“Governor Kehoe will continue to consider options to assist Columbia and communities across the state to address crime. A truly tragic and unnecessary act of violence took the life of a young woman with a bright future ahead of her,” the statement read.