Iraq war veteran convicted of murdering Terrytown rapper

,NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune ^ | 4/8/15 | Paul Purpura

[BBell]

A Jefferson Parish jury rejected an Iraq war veteran's insanity defense Wednesday (April 8), finding he knew right from wrong when he shot a Terrytown rapper in the head during a dispute outside a Harvey bar last year.

Devin Bonilla was convicted as charged of second-degree murder for killing Bowie Richard, 21, a local entertainer who used the stage name Yung Kaptin. Bonilla, 25, who served in Iraq and was discharged as a private from the Louisiana Army National Guard after his arrest last year, faces spending the rest of his life in prison.

The jury of seven women and five men deliberated 11/2 hours before delivering the verdict just before 6 p.m. The verdict triggered cries from some of Richard's friends and family that packed one side of the courtroom. Judge Ellen Kovach of the 24th Judicial District Court said she will sentence Bonilla on Wednesday.

Bonilla was handcuffed and escorted out of the courtroom shortly after. He turned to his family and said, "Sorry," as he walked past them. His family members sobbed.

The verdict capped a three-day trial during which Bonilla's attorneys John Craft and Roma Kent made little attempt to challenge the veracity of numerous eyewitnesses who said they saw the defendant shoot Richard. It happened about 2:40 a.m., on Jan. 18, 2014, outside The Edge Sports Bar & Daiquiris on Lapalco Boulevard in Harvey.

The defense asserted that Bonilla's post-traumatic stress disorder, stemming primarily from a combat experience in Iraq, affected his ability to distinguish right from wrong. As such, the attorneys asked the jury to find Bonilla not guilty by reason of insanity. Had the jury done so, Bonilla would have been confined indefinitely at a state mental hospital.

Bonilla also pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder. His attorneys said that at most, he committed manslaughter,

[BBell]

Stupid white boy did not know that rapping was a minority thing.sarc

Bowie Richard, 21, of Terrytown, was shot in the head and killed Jan. 18, 2014, outside a Harvey bar. He was an aspiring rapper who used the stage name "Yung Kaptin." (Facebook)

Devin Bonilla, after he was extradited Feb. 4 from Miami to Jefferson Parish, to face a charge of second-degree murder in the Jan. 18, death of Bowie Richard, 21, of Terrytown. Richard, a rapper and DJ known as "Yung Kaptin," was shot in the head outside The Edge Sports Bar on Laplaco Boulevard. Authorities said Bonilla fled to Miami after the shooting. Because he fled and has ties to the Honduras, he was ordered held without bond in the parish jail. (JPSO)

[freedom6178]

Looks more like he would have belonged to ISIS.

[Oliviaforever]

I was in Harvey and Terrytown just a couple days ago and was shocked to find that everyone has not been shot dead.

[PGR88]

“Rapper” has got to be the most dangerous profession there is.

[Pearls Before Swine]

PTSD from white rap. /S

[BBell]

Maybe he had a “Vanilla Ice” flashback.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Nope. Aspiring rapper is.

[tumblindice]

My defense would have been, “The deceased was a rapper.”

“Here’s your medal, sir.”

[Svartalfiar]

Hmm... Going off of a couple different articles from nola:

Craft [his attorney] said Bonilla's job in the National Guard was in the quartermaster field, which generally involves a soldier who distributes supplies. Although that's not a combatant job, Bonilla drove a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle that struck a roadside bomb, Craft said.

The National Guard also confirmed he was in A Battery, 1st Battalion, 141st Field Artillery Regiment, a unit at Jackson Barracks historically known as the Washington Artillery. His military job was a cannon crewman.....The National Guard also did not disclose whether Bonilla was injured in Iraq. His awards and decorations include a Combat Action Badge. But a Purple Heart, given to troops wounded in battle, is not on that list of awards and decorations.

So they may be missing a bunch of details, but it sounds like he's just trying to use PTSD as an excuse to get out of a murder charge. There were several units overseas that just handed out CABs if they thought they saw a bad guy on the mountainside. Not having a Purple Heart tells me he likely didn't get hit or anything. And, as one article mentioned, his hair is pretty long to have been in the Guard attending monthly drills. Think they said he was AWOL for a while.