Suspect charged in Springfield hotel shooting

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A man wanted in a weekend shooting that injured nine people at a hotel here has been charged, but police still had not found him Friday. Greene County prosecutors on Thursday charged Curtis B. Sharp, whose street name is Cortez, with first-degree assault, second-degree assault and two counts of armed criminal action. Sharp, 25, remained on the loose Friday morning and police continued to search for him, Springfield police spokesman Matt Brown said. Four men and five women, all in their early 20s, were injured. Police have not identified the victims, citing concerns for their safety.

Okla. man convicted of killing former girlfriend

NEOSHO, Mo. -- A gang member has been convicted of instigating the killing of his former girlfriend because she was having a relationship with another man and selling his drugs. Jurors deliberated about an hour and 20 minutes Thursday before finding Brian Lamel McDaniel, 30, guilty of first-degree murder in the July 2001 shooting death of Kendace "Sissy" DeCarlo, 23, of Joplin. She was shot in front of her two children, then ages 6 and 8. McDaniel, the getaway driver, and co-defendant Donald Overton, 32, the alleged shooter, were suspected members of a Bloods gang from Tulsa, Okla.

Springfield airport traffic up 23 percent in 2005

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Passenger traffic at Springfield-Branson National Airport increased 23 percent in 2005, the airport's largest single-year increase. Travelers getting on and off airplanes at the airport hit 888,738 in 2005, after increasing 10.5 percent the year before. Airport officials won't know how the 2005 numbers compare with other airports for several months, when Air Transport Association traffic numbers are complete. In 2005, airlines added direct flights for the first time to Las Vegas, Atlanta and Orlando.

Plumbing inspector gets 2 1/2 years for bribery

ST. LOUIS -- The assistant chief plumbing inspector for the city of St. Louis was sentenced Friday to 2 1/2 years in prison in a bribery scheme. Albert Carothers, 64, pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges Sept. 2. Carothers was in charge of issuing plumbers' and drain layers' licenses. Federal prosecutor Catherine Hanaway said Carothers accepted bribes amounting to $18,000 from eight applicants in exchange for pre-marked answer sheets for written exams, or for falsifying records showing experience.

-- From wire reports Hanaway said some of the applicants who paid bribes to Carothers lacked sufficient experience to qualify. Others were recent immigrants from Bosnia who didn't speak English well enough to take the exam. Carothers "played on their vulnerability for his individual profit," Hanaway said.