Accused Columbia killer back in court next week; suspect remains jailed without bond

A preliminary hearing is set for next Thursday (January 11) for a Columbia man charged with killing his ex-girlfriend in December on Typhoon court.

Boone County prosecutors have charged 27-year-old John Williamson III with first degree murder, armed criminal action and with unlawful use of a weapon for the death of 27-year-old Azairah Brownlee, who was shot in the neck. Court documents say Williamson is the ex-boyfriend and that the incident started with Williamson banging on the driver’s window of the victim’s car and then getting into the truck’s bed. The Columbia Police Department’s redacted four-page probable cause statement says Williamson and his ex-girlfriend then began fighting and that Brownlee was shot once.

The court documents also allege that Williamson called the victim dozens of times in the hours leading up to the murder, and that Williamson restricted some of those calls to conceal who was calling. Williamson is currently jailed without bond.