A dispute over a shirt that led to a Fargo teen pummeling his younger brother on Interstate 94 resulted in two misdemeanor convictions Monday in Cass County District Court.
Derek Brewer, 19, 421 24th St. S., hit his 16-year-old brother, who was driving the vehicle, about 20 times with a closed fist at 9:30 p.m. Friday while headed to Fargo from the Horace area, Assistant State's Attorney Trent Mahler said.
The dispute began when Derek Brewer, who was sitting in the passenger seat, told his brother he had borrowed a shirt without permission, Cass County Sheriff's Investigator Rick Majerus said.
"An argument ensued and the fight was on," Majerus said.
The younger brother steered the wheel with his knees while trying to fend off the blows, Majerus said. The boy reported the incident about six hours later when he checked into MeritCare Hospital with several large bruises to his eyes and a large bump on his head, Mahler said.
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Brewer, who told East Central District Judge John Irby he didn't use a closed fist during the incident, pleaded guilty to charges of domestic violence/simple assault and reckless endangerment. On the latter, more serious count, Irby sentenced Brewer to one year in jail, all of it suspended for one year of unsupervised probation. Brewer must also pay $650 in fines and fees and take a chemical dependency evaluation.
