SEDALIA, Mo. (KCTV) – A man wanted out of Kansas for a fatality crash ahead of New Year’s Eve 2022 has been found and arrested at his Missouri home nearly 2 years later.

Pettis County, Missouri, Circuit Court records indicate that on Friday, Dec. 6, Timothy R. Smith, 37, of Sedalia, a man wanted in connection to a fatality crash out of Kansas, was found at his home and arrested.

A probable cause statement filed by the Sedalia Police Department revealed that Smith had been charged with involuntary manslaughter, aggravated endangering a child, driving under the influence, vehicle liability insurance, child safety restraint and failure to wear a seatbelt out of Leavenworth County.

In addition to the out-of-state warrant, law enforcement officials also booked Smith on an additional charge of fugitive from justice. He claimed he had been unaware of the warrant, which was filed in Kansas in February 2023.

A criminal complaint filed by the Leavenworth County, Kansas, Attorney’s Office revealed that on Dec. 30, 2022, Smith had been driving under the influence before he was involved in a collision that killed James H. Wilson. Meanwhile, a child under the age of 1 had been present inside the vehicle and was not properly restrained during the incident.

During a hearing on Monday, Dec. 9, court records noted that Smith refused extradition. The State is expected to seek a Governor’s warrant.

As of Wednesday, Dec. 11, Smith remains behind bars in Pettis County with no bond listed. A case review hearing has been set for 10 a.m. on Jan. 7, 2025. No further information has been released.

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KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan covers politics on both sides of the state line. If you have a story idea to share, you can send Charlie an email at charlie.keegan@kshb.com.

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A group of industry leaders in Missouri is asking the state’s Supreme Court to throw out the results of November’s election on Proposition A.

“I don’t believe voters had a real understanding of what they were voting for,” said Buddy Lahl, CEO of the Missouri Restaurant Association.

That organization and several others like the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry filed a lawsuit Friday challenging the constitutionality of the question voters saw on their ballots.

The suit argues the question combined two elements — minimum wage and paid sick leave — into one question, whereas state law says ballot questions “shall contain not more than one subject.”

The suit also argues the fiscal note attached to the ballot summary was insufficient.

This note is supposed to explain how a ballot might impact the savings or costs of local government entities.

Lahl admitted it would have been best to challenge the ballot question before the election, but state law does allow organizations to challenge a question after the election when 57 percent of voters supported the measure.

“We just didn’t have the resources to do it before,” Lahl said.

Charlie Keegan

Andi Montee co-owns Mokaska Coffee in downtown St. Joseph. The business threw its support behind Proposition A. Montee said the lawsuit was a surprise.

“I feel like it’s really trying to get this removed on technical reasons, when really people expressed what they wanted,” Montee said.

John Batten

Lahl and other plaintiffs hope the Supreme Court hears the case before Jan. 1, when the minimum wage increase aspect of the law takes effect.

The Supreme Court gave the the Secretary of State and State Auditor until Dec. 26 to formally respond to suit.

In a statement, a spokesperson from Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick’s office said, “We stand by the process we have used for decades to produce fair and accurate fiscal notes and fiscal note summaries. We look forward to defending this process that allows our office to provide unbiased cost estimates that voters can trust.”

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