Free Wilmington Travel Guide!NC appeals court sides with killer’s release claim
EMERY P. DALESIO
Associated Press
RALEIGH, NC (AP) — A North Carolina appeals court ruling could lead to the release of a man convicted of two deaths.
The state Court of Appeals ruled 3-0 Tuesday that the case of Bobby E. Bowden of Fayetteville is different from another case which saw the state Supreme Court decide in 2010 that a life sentence means life.
The appeals court sided with a lower judge who last year ordered that Bowden be released because he served his time under old sentencing guidelines.
A 1970s state law said a life sentence meant 80 years. The appeals court agreed with Bowden’s attorneys that he earned credits shaving off more time for the 1975 slayings.
A spokeswoman for Attorney General Roy Cooper would not say whether the ruling would be appealed.
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