Columbia Tampering with physical evidence ordinance (§ 16-197)
Chapter 16: Offenses and Miscellaneous Provisions · Article II. Code of Offenses
(a) A person commits the crime of tampering with physical evidence if he:
(1) Alters, destroys, suppresses or conceals any record, document or thing with purpose to impair its verity, legibility or availability in any official proceeding or investigation; or
(2) Makes, presents or uses any record, document or thing knowing it to be false with purpose to mislead a public servant who is or may be engaged in any official proceeding or investigation.
(b) Tampering with physical evidence is a class A misdemeanor.
Official source: City of Columbia official Code of Ordinances (online): look up Sec. 16-197
Text from Supplement 139 (September 3, 2026).
Last checked November 1, 2026. The city's official copy controls; this page is a reading copy, not legal advice.