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Tragedy struck the small town of Manassas, Virginia, on August 19, 1984, when Virginia State Trooper Johnny Rush Bowman, 31, was brutally stabbed to death in his home during the early hours. At 0415, the assailant rang the doorbell. Bowman answered the door dressed in athletic shorts, a T-shirt and sneakers. The assailant stabbed Bowman over 40 times. The trooper’s wife, brother, sister-in-law and 2-year-old daughter were home at the time.
Bowman had been working a detail at the county fair and had come home to grab a few hours’ sleep before his regular shift, parking his state police car in front of his front door. Contemporaneous media reports indicate that as Bowman unlocked the door, the killer used an obscenity and said, “I’m from the power company,” then began a three-minute attack, stabbing Bowman with what was later thought to be a folding knife with a 4-inch blade.
THE ATTACK
According to investigators, “the first blow to Bowman’s chest punctured the pulmonary artery. But the wounds were also in the neck, the face, the stomach, [and] a shoulder. A large number of the wounds were bunched together on one side of his back, where, police say, the killer, in a frenzy, stabbed Bowman repeatedly after he had fallen to the ground in a fetal position.”
According to the Washington Post, W.T. Poindexter, an investigator who photographed the scene, described it as follows: “‘You want to know what it was like? If you can imagine being able to take pure, unadulterated rage out of a paper bag and throw it into a four-or five-foot-square area and locking the door for five minutes — that’s what the scene was like.’”
I HAVE THE POWER
The trooper’s wife, Terri Lee Bowman, had been downstairs when the doorbell rang. She pleaded with Bowman not to answer the door, then heard the attacker state he was with “the fucking power company.” The entire episode took place in pitch darkness.
Manassas, Va., in Prince William County, is a suburb of Washington, D.C. Until 1983, Prince William Electric Cooperative provided electricity to Manassas. That year, PWEC merged with Tri-County Electric Cooperative. By 1984, the year of Bowman’s murder, the new utility was called Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative. Residents would have referred to NOVEC as “the electric” or “the electric company” in 1984. The assailant’s wording that he was with the “power company” may indicate that maintaining “power” over the victim might have been the driving force in the violent attack, which was literally overkill.
However, in 1986, Prince William County prosecutor Paul B. Ebert told the Washington Post that he was unconvinced that “the assailant identified himself as from the power company.”
THE CHASE
At the time of the murder, Bowman’s brother Bobby was in town visiting and was sleeping upstairs in the house. Bobby reportedly came running downstairs when he heard the commotion and tried to assist his brother. Bobby stated that he and the assailant fought briefly, and that the murderer was a large Black man.
This description conflicted with evidence that the police later revealed suggesting the assailant was a White male. The assailant fled on foot, leaving behind sunglasses, a wig, and a construction hard hat, which the FBI continues to retain as evidence. The weapon, believed to be a folding knife with a 4-inch blade, was never recovered.
In 1987, the media reported that the murderer of Trooper Bowman was still being actively pursued on a full-time, daily basis, and investigators indicated that there were developments in the case.
One of these developments was the identification as a suspect of Perry L. Worrell, a 32-year-old White male from Dumfries, Va., a town about 20 miles from Manassas. Worrell was a fellow Virginia State Trooper.
PERSONAL PROBLEMS
Worrell and Bowman had served in both the military and the Virginia State Police together. Worrell’s attorney, Philip J. Hirshkop, stated that Worrell and Bowman were “very close friends.”
According to the authorities, there was “‘a high degree of familiarity’”and “‘an emotional involvement’” between Worrell and Bowman and Bowman’s wife, Terri.
Officials released a statement indicating that Bowman was killed because of “personal problems” between the trooper, his wife and suspect Worrell although they denied the relationship was a love triangle.
During an interview with the Washington Post, Worrell’s wife Melanie “referred to ‘what we’ve been through,’ without elaborating.”
Shortly after Bowman’s murder, a law enforcement source referred to Worrell as a “‘walking time bomb.’”
Worrell was placed on an unpaid leave of absence from the Virginia State Police “within weeks of the slaying…for medical reasons because he was upset about the death of Bowman.”
‘UNABLE TO COPE WITH HIS CRIME’
Robert C. Martin, the chief state police investigator in charge of the Bowman case, “cited an FBI profile and police information of [Worrell], and acknowledged that the suspect had become progressively anxious and depressed since the murder and was unable to ‘cope with his crime.’” Martin indicated that Worrell might be “gradually prone to violence and could turn on anyone he believed was disloyal.”
In addition, Martin indicated he was also “convinced that more than one individual knew who murdered Bowman but would not provide details.”
In November 1986, Worrell was in a motor vehicle accident and subsequently endured multiple surgeries. By May 1987, he was reported to be “‘severely incapacitated’” and unable to work. Police officials indicated that Worrell was no longer a member of the state police at that time. Worrell died in 2015.
POLICE THEORIES
Investigators initially theorized that the murderer may have feared that Bowman knew sensitive information about him that could be damaging. They believed that the brutal crime was premeditated, both because of the hour of the attack and the fact that the assailant wore a disguise.
Months following the slaying, investigators believed it was possible the murderer was either mentally unstable (i.e., schizophrenic/psychotic) or possibly on drugs (such as PCP) because of the violent nature of the crime.
However, investigators also stated that the ferocity of the slaying is “frequently a characteristic of a homosexual killing.”
99.4 PERCENT CERTAIN
In 1881, Proctor and Gamble began advertising Ivory Soap as “99 and 44 one-hundredths percent pure.” This slogan was still in use and in the public consciousness in the 1980s, when Ivory Soap continued to be heavily advertised.
Almost two years after Bowman’s murder, Martin, the state police’s chief investigator, stated that law enforcement was “99.4 percent certain that another state trooper killed Johnny Rush Bowman…. Several law enforcement sources said the trooper under investigation is Perry L. Worrell….”
Martin indicated that an arrest was imminent because the information they had gathered in the prior two months had produced “dramatic progress.” Ralph Marshall, another state police investigator, agreed that he was nearly 100% convinced – certainly beyond any reasonable doubt.
DNA 40 YEARS AGO
Forty years ago, technology was less advanced, and DNA analysis was in its infancy. Given those limitations, the analysis of the evidence at the crime scene was reportedly thorough. The preservation and collection of DNA was not even on the radar yet. It is likely that the items could have been contaminated, not collected properly, destroyed by inadequate storage, etc.
As recently as six years ago, the FBI posted an announcement seeking information about Trooper Bowman’s murder. Special Agent Sarah Thaden, who was with the FBI’s Washington Field Office at the time, indicated that there is contemporary assistance available: “[The FBI] can provide support with evidence collection, victim and witness services, lab capabilities, technical analysis, and further support from specialized units, such as the Behavioral Analysis Unit.”
CALL FOR ACTION: IT IS TIME FOR JUSTICE FOR TROOPER BOWMAN
it is time for the Virginia State Police to reveal the truth about Trooper Bowman’s murder.
Given the prohibition of hiring openly gay troopers in the 1980s, the state police might have been hesitant to charge Worrell as the assailant because of the ensuing negative publicity. If the case had gone to trial, the realities of Worrell and Bowman’s alleged relationship could have been revealed. Any evidence produced at trial that indicated that two state troopers may have been involved in a same-sex romantic relationship and that one trooper allegedly murdered another trooper could have damaged the reputation of the Virginia State Police.
It is understandable that a law enforcement agency would have kept the truth under wraps four decades ago. The 1980s were a different time.
Now, however, on the fortieth anniversary of the assassination of Trooper Johnny Bowman, it is time for the Virginia State Police to reveal the killer. Having gay troopers is no longer a reason for shame, but keeping the identity of Bowman’s murderer in the closet is.
Every year that Trooper Bowman’s assassin remains unnamed is another year of injustice.
In 1986, Martin, the state police investigator, said, “I don’t care whether [the suspect is] a member of this department…. Murder is murder…. I’m not concerned about embarrassment to the department.”
While Martin may not have been voicing the opinion of the entire agency, it is now time for the Virginia State Police to disregard any “embarrassment to the department” and publicly name the killer of Trooper Johnny Rush Bowman.
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Source: www.lawofficer.com