Bobby Jack Fowler (June 12, 1939 – May 20, 2006) was an American rapist and suspected

murderer Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

who was active in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

from 1973 to 1995. He died in prison of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

during a 16-year sentence following a conviction for

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...

kidnapping In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

and attempted rape in

Newport, Oregon Newport is a city in Lincoln County, Oregon, United States. It was incorporated in 1882, though the name dates back to the establishment of a post office in 1868. Newport was named for Newport, Rhode Island. As of the 2010 census, the city had ...

, in 1996 (for an attack that took place in 1995).

Biography and early life

Childhood

Bobby Jack Fowler was born June 12, 1939, to Selva “Mutt” Fowler and Oma Lee (Hathaway) Fowler, he was their second born son, his older brother Walter Fowler was born in 1934 and his younger sister Susan Fowler was born in 1950, both died in 2004, two years before his death. His parents beat him and his siblings when they were kids.

Marriage

On March 6, 1959, Fowler married Theresa Patton, and their kids were Johnny, Janey, Pam, Loretta and Randell. After his two arrests in 1969 (which are mentioned below) he and Theresa divorced on May 17, 1971, just before he moved to British Columbia.

Known crimes and modus operandi

Fowler was a transient construction worker who is known to have traveled extensively across North America. He spent time "rabbiting around" North America to such places as

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

and

Washington state Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...

. During his travels he developed an extensive criminal record and is known to have committed several violent crimes. An alcohol,

amphetamine Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used ...

, and

methamphetamine Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. Methamph ...

abuser, Fowler had a criminal record that included attempted murder, sexual assault, and firearms offenses. In 1969, he was charged with murdering a man and woman in Texas, but was only convicted of discharging a firearm within city limits. Fowler also spent time in a Tennessee prison for sexual assault and attempted murder because, in the words of an investigator, "he tied womanup, beat the hell out of her with her own belt, covered her with brush and left her to die." He liked to travel far and wide in beat-up old cars, frequently picked up hitchhikers, and spent time in bars and motels. Fowler believed that women he came into contact with who were hitchhiking and hanging out in bars wanted to be sexually assaulted.

Suspected crimes

Fowler is a suspect or person of interest in at least 16 murders in British Columbia and Oregon dating as far back as 1969.

Project E-Pana

Fowler was a suspect under the focus of RCMP project

E-Pana Project E-Pana is a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) task force created in 2005 with the purpose of solving cases of missing and murdered persons along a section of Highway 16, all female, between Prince Rupert, British Columbia and Prince Ge ...

. His supposed DNA was found on the body of Colleen MacMillen. Fowler is also strongly suspected to have killed both Gale Weys and Pamela Darlington in 1973. The

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...

believe that he may have also killed as many as ten of the other victims, and possibly as many as 20. Potential Canadian victims include those murdered and missing along the

Highway of Tears The Highway of Tears is a corridor of Highway 16 between Prince George and Prince Rupert in British Columbia, Canada, which has been the location of many disappearances and murders beginning in 1970. The phrase was coined during a vigil held ...

. However, many of these murders occurred after Fowler's imprisonment in 1996 and geographic profiler

Kim Rossmo Dr. Kim Rossmo (born 1955 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) is a Canadian criminologist specializing in geographic profiling. Vancouver He joined the Vancouver Police Department as a civilian employee in 1978 and became a sworn officer in 1980. In 1987 ...

is on the record as saying that in his opinion Fowler is not responsible for any of the deaths along Highway 16 between 1989 and 2006. It is possible that the only thing linking Fowler to Highway 16 is that he worked for a now closed Prince George roofing company, Happy's Roofing, in 1974.

Other murders

On May 3, 1992, around 1:00 a.m., Sheila Swanson, 19, and Melissa Sanders, 17, were last seen making a call from a payphone near the Beverly Beach State Park where they had been camping. Their bodies were later discovered on October 10, 1992, by hunters in a wooded area near Eddyville, Oregon.

Arrest and investigation

On June 28, 1995, Fowler was arrested following an incident which involved a woman jumping out of a window in the Newport Oregon Tides Inn Motel with a rope still tied to her ankle. She survived the attack and reported the incident to the local police. On January 8, 1996, Fowler was convicted of kidnapping in the first degree, attempted rape in the first degree, sexual abuse in the first degree, coercion, assault in the fourth degree, and menacing. He was sentenced to 195 months (16 years, 3 months) with the possibility of parole. On September 25, 2012, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Lincoln County District Attorney Rob Bovett named Bobby Jack Fowler as a suspect in three of the E-Pana murders. His supposed DNA was found on the body of Colleen MacMillen, one of the presumed victims.

Death

In May 2006, Fowler died at the age of 66 in

Oregon State Penitentiary Oregon State Penitentiary (OSP), sometimes called Oregon State Prison, is a supermax, maximum security prison in the Northwestern United States, northwest United States in Salem, Oregon, Salem, Oregon. Originally opened in Portland, Oregon, Portl ...

from lung cancer. His body was cremated.

References

External links

Highway of Tears Symposium Recommendation Report
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Bobby Jack 1939 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American criminals American male criminals American people convicted of assault American people convicted of attempted murder American people convicted of rape American people convicted of attempted rape American people convicted of kidnapping American people who died in prison custody Crimes in Oregon Criminals from Texas Deaths from lung cancer in Oregon Highway of Tears People from Taylor County, Texas Suspected serial killers Prisoners who died in Oregon detention