Article Update

WOMAN SEARCHES FOR MISSING SISTER
Finding the lost has been something of an obsession for Cynthia Hurtie, Spring Hill. She’ll settle for finding just one missing person, but ideally, Hurtie, a recent graduate with a degree in forensic science, would like to find her sister, Star Boomer.
"If you have a person go missing in your life, it’s unrepairable," she said. "It does major damage to the family members."
The last people to see Boomer alive told police that Boomer got into an altercation on Feb. 23, 1999 at Uncle Mike’s Bar in Kansas City, Kan. She was allegedly knocked to the ground and where she lost consciousness.
According to old news accounts, Boomer went to the local watering hole with friend and roommate, Carolyn Marshall. Marshall stayed for one drink and planned to return to pick up Boomer later in the evening. Marshall was told that Boomer had left with two men, when she returned to pick Boomer up. Investigators believe she was killed at the bar and her body was dumped.
It cut short future plans for mother of one. Boomer, along with her young son, were planning to move to Spring Hill to live with her parents when she disappeared.
Hurtie said someone knows what happened to her sister 10 years ago, and it’s time they came forward.
There were 13 witnesses in the bar, according to investigators, and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation is upping the ante in the case with a $5,000 reward for information.
"We need these witnesses to open up and say something," Hurtie said. "There were 13 witnesses in the bar, and nobody is saying anything."
One of those witnesses from the bar that night, Shon Pernice, was a regular on the news early this year, and Hurtie hopes that might trigger memories of others who may have seen something.
Pernice, who is being investigated for the January disappearance of his wife, Renee, was a patron at Uncle Mike’s Bar on the night of Boomer’s disappearance. He was not named as a person of interest or a suspect in the 10-year-old case.
In 1999, two men were arrested and charged with second degree murder, however, the men were released and charges were dismissed for lack of evidence.
Hurtie said police need to recover Boomer’s body for prosecution to move forward, but that’s a tall order after more than 10 years.
To that end, Hurtie is working with a private investigator who trains cadaver dogs. One dog, Jordan, was trained specifically to search for Boomer’s body. Hurtie, along with her private investigator, flew to Florida with Jordan to search for Caylee Anthony last summer.
Anthony, a 2-year-old, went missing last June. Her body was eventually recovered and her mother was charged with murder.
Hurtie said it’s now her life’s work to help find missing people. Hurtie was living in Lawrence and working in the nursing industry when Boomer was murdered, but she’s since moved to Spring Hill to be near her parents and pursue finding the lost.
"It’s really affected our family," she said. "And we need these witnesses to open up and say something."
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Kansas City, Kan. Police Department are still pursuing the case. Those with information about the disappearance of Star Boomer are asked to contact the KBI at (800)-KS-CRIME.
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Special thanks to Danedri Thompson for providing the complete article at no charge and giving us permission to post the article in full. Thank you Ms. Thompson and the The Gardner News and Spring Hill New Era.