Public safety news in brief: Murder charge filed in DWI wreck

A Belton man with two previous drunken-driving convictions was charged Friday with second-degree murder and DWI in a July 12 alcohol-related fatality.
Authorities say Jeffrey D. Brewer, 32, was driving a vehicle that left eastbound Interstate 470 near U.S. 71 in south Kansas City and struck a streetlight support. A passenger in the car, Katherine M. Anderson, died at the scene.
According to the complaint, Brewer, who was treated for minor injuries, tested over the legal limit for alcohol and also tested positive for marijuana.
The couple had attended a concert earlier that evening.
Court records show Brewer was convicted twice of DWI in 2002.
BELTON Reward climbs in Kopetsky case
The reward for finding a missing Belton girl has been boosted to $80,000 if she is safely returned by her birthday.
Kara Kopetsky’s 19th birthday would be Feb. 17. She was last seen May 4, 2007, at Belton High School. A reward of $30,000 has been collected by family and friends, and an anonymous donor has temporarily added $50,000 to encourage someone to come forward with information.
Call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (816-474-8477).
KANSAS CITY Charges in baseball bat attack
Jackson County prosecutors on Friday accused a 17-year-old boy of hitting a man in the head with a baseball bat after the man had kicked him out of a community gym.
Prosecutors charged Abdi S. Abdirahman with first-degree assault and armed criminal action in connection with the attack about 11:50 p.m. Nov. 7 in the parking lot of the Della Lamb Community Services gym at 500 Woodland Ave.
According to court records, Abdirahman was angry after he had been escorted out of the gym. He waited outside until the man who kicked him out walked to his car. He allegedly came up behind the victim and struck him on the back of the head with a wooden bat, fracturing his skull. The victim remained unconscious for two days. Police arrested Abdirahman on Thursday.
CASS COUNTY Wreck victim identified
Authorities have identified the victim of a one-vehicle wreck this week as Anne Curry, 16, of Pleasant Hill.
According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, the Jeep Cherokee that Curry was driving failed to make a curve Wednesday morning near Missouri 58 and Hickory Grove Road, west of Pleasant Hill. The SUV overturned several times. Curry was wearing a seat belt.
WYANDOTTE COUNTY Hard 50 term in KCK slaying
A Kansas City, Kan., man was sentenced to nearly 70 years in prison Friday for the murder of a Lenexa man and the attempted murder of another person.
Katreal Harris, 19, received a “hard 50” sentence in Wyandotte County District Court for the April 17, 2007, shooting death of 22-year-old Christopher Sloan. That means Harris will serve at least 50 years in prison before he’s eligible for parole.
A jury found Harris guilty last month of first-degree murder in Sloan’s death, as well as attempted first-degree murder and criminal possession of a firearm. The lesser crimes resulted in a consecutive sentence of more than 19 years and a concurrent sentence of 19 months.