A 21-year-old woman is facing multiple felony charges after Columbia police say she drove a Mercedes-Benz directly into a small group of people outside downtown bars, hospitalizing one victim before speeding away from the scene. Officers arrested Eitaly Cheyann Hinton, of Odessa, Missouri, following the early morning crash, and jail records show she was booked without bond.
According to KRCG, Columbia police were called to the 100 block of South Seventh Street in downtown Columbia after the car struck two people during what began as a street fight. Court documents relayed by the station indicate responding officers reviewed bystander video that captured a man shouting “Fight me” in the crowd moments before the Mercedes-Benz pulled out of a parking space, screeched its tires, revved its engine, and accelerated directly toward the group at roughly 1:15 a.m.
The stretch of South Seventh Street sits in the heart of downtown Columbia's entertainment district, a strip crowded with bars and student nightlife near the University of Missouri where police typically maintain heavy weekend patrols around bar-closing hours, per the same account. That dense late-night foot traffic is part of why officers were able to gather bystander footage and respond quickly once the crash was reported.
Vehicle Located With Windshield Damage
The Mercedes-Benz struck two people before leaving the scene, the station reports. One victim was taken to the hospital, while the other declined medical treatment. Investigators located the suspect vehicle shortly after the collision, discovering damage to its windshield consistent with striking pedestrians — evidence that helped lead officers to Hinton and resulted in the car being impounded as part of the ongoing investigation.
Officers arrested Hinton and took her to the Boone County Jail, where detainee logs list her under no-bond status following her August 30 booking. Boone County Sheriff's Office records show she was booked at 7:29 a.m. that morning and give her birth month and year as March 2005, making her 21 at the time of the arrest.
Felony Charges Carry Steep Mandatory Prison Exposure
Prosecutors charged Hinton with first-degree assault, armed criminal action, leaving the scene of an accident involving physical injury, and misdemeanor driving while revoked. Under Missouri Revised Statutes § 571.015, armed criminal action applies whenever a felony is committed with the help of a dangerous instrument — a category that, under Missouri case law, includes motor vehicles when they are intentionally used as weapons, according to Justia Law. A conviction on that count is an unclassified felony carrying a minimum of three years in state prison.
Missouri law compounds that exposure significantly. Per FindLaw, Missouri Revised Statutes § 571.017 requires that any prison sentence for armed criminal action run consecutively — not concurrently — with the sentence for the underlying felony, and it bars probation or parole during the mandatory minimum term. First-degree assault itself is a Class B felony punishable by five to 15 years in prison, but it escalates to a Class A felony carrying 10 to 30 years or life imprisonment if serious physical injury is proven at trial, Justia Law notes.
Additional Charges for Fleeing the Scene
The leaving-the-scene charge stems from Missouri Revised Statutes § 577.060, which classifies fleeing an accident that causes physical injury as a Class E felony punishable by up to four years in prison; Missouri law requires drivers to stop and either render aid or notify police immediately after a crash involving injuries. The misdemeanor driving-while-revoked charge, meanwhile, falls under Missouri Revised Statutes § 302.321 and carries up to 30 days in jail and fines as high as $500 for a first offense.
It remains unclear whether impairment played any role in the collision, and the medical condition of the hospitalized victim has not been detailed. The case echoes other vehicle-related felony filings Hoodline has tracked in Columbia this summer, though Hinton's case is separate and involves its own set of facts and charges.
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