Special prosecutor clears Columbia police officers in fatal Vibez Lounge shooting

Charles Dunlap, Columbia Daily Tribune
·2 min read
A shooting near Vibez Lounge and Grill at 19 N. Fifth St. left five people wounded and one man dead early Nov. 14. When police arrived, two men with guns ran in opposite directions after firing at each other.
A shooting near Vibez Lounge and Grill at 19 N. Fifth St. left five people wounded and one man dead early Nov. 14. When police arrived, two men with guns ran in opposite directions after firing at each other.

Two Columbia Police Department officers involved in a shooting Nov. 14 outside Vibez Lounge that resulted in the death of Quillan Jacobs, 30, have been cleared of wrongdoing by a special prosecutor.

The police officers were responding to a gunfight outside the downtown Columbia nightclub between Jacobs and Todd D. Nesbitt Jr., police said.

'You diagnose a problem': How Columbia could update its 7-year-old community violence report

The officers were justified in their use of deadly force, Special Prosecutor Tim Lohmar of St. Charles County noted in a case review memo.

Jacobs disobeyed commands by the officers in their attempt to detain and arrest him, Lohmar wrote.

"The officers believed (Jacobs) posed a deadly threat to the officers and other (people) as he maintained possession of his firearm," Lohmar wrote.

Q&A: Police Chief Geoff Jones, Mayor Brian Treece on rise in violence in downtown Columbia

Nesbitt faces charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action over the alleged firefight with Jacobs that left five bystanders injured.

Nesbitt has had his trial date bumped several times since the November shooting. Hearings are scheduled May 31 and June 21, prior to his new trial date of June 28.

Columbia Police Chief Geoff Jones received the memo from Lohmar on Tuesday.

The police department followed its policies related to officer-involved shootings, Jones wrote in a statement. This included investigations by the department's internal affairs division and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Lohmar was requested as a special prosecutor by Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Knight to remove any conflict-of-interest possibilities, Jones wrote.

"At this time, Columbia police are not aware of the results of any ballistics investigation or autopsy," Jones added. "Now that this phase of the review has concluded, we will work toward resolution of the department’s internal affairs investigation."

Charles Dunlap covers courts, public safety and other general subjects for the Tribune. You can reach him at cdunlap@columbiatribune.com, or CD_CDT on Twitter. Please consider subscribing to support vital local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Columbia officers cleared in Vibez Lounge fatal shooting