Fate of US illegal alien to be decided this week (Jennifer Short murder case)

CBC North West Territories ^ | October 15, 2002

[Shermy]

Yellowknife, N.W.T. - The crown prosecutor's office will decide early this week whether to prosecute an illegal alien from the U.S. for drunk driving or turn him directly over to U.S. authorities who are investigating a triple murder.

On Friday, an immigration adjudicator ruled Garrison Bowman should not have entered Canada because he had a criminal record in the U.S.

Bowman is the North Carolina man wanted by U.S. investigators for questioning in a murder of young girl and her parents in Virginia. He was arrested in Inuvik on Oct. 3.

On the way out of the court, Bowman was asked if he knew anything about the murder of Jennifer Short. At first he said he knew nothing. Then he changed his mind and said that he knew "lots."

Investigators from North Carolina and Virginia talked to Bowman after the hearing to find out exactly what he does know.

Bowman cannot be deported until his drunk driving charge is heard by a court or stayed by a crown prosecutor. An official from Immigration expects that decision will happen early this week.

At the hearing, Bowman told the adjudicator he didn't go to Inuvik to hide.

"The implications are that I'm running away from a crime, which I am not," he said. "This trip was planned two years ago. I was going to come to Canada then I was going to go to Alaska."

Bowman did not contest the allegations against him, nor did he have a lawyer. He told reporters afterwards he had no issue with Friday's verdict.

"The decision is just, I'm guilty due to my own damn stupidness," he says.

[Shermy]

This guy is the suspect (can I use that word?) in the murders of Jennifer Short, and her parents in Bassett, Virginia. Just after the fled to Canada.

[patriciaruth]

I think you say that he is "a person of interest.";-)

Thanks for posting this article. I didn't know they had any leads at all.

Any news of clues from Jennifer Shorts remains? Could they tell anything about time or manner of death with what remained?

[thathamiltonwoman]

Who is this guy? Did he know the Shorts or work for Mr. Short? Are there friends and neighbors who say he was fixated on the little girl?

[calenel]

I saw an article somewhere that said he had a dispute with Mr. Short regarding the moving of a mobile home (Mr. Short had a business doing this) and threatened to kill him.

[Alberta's Child]

Canada sometimes has a way of learing things the hard way. A few years back they had a suspect in custody for a multiple homicide in the U.S. They refused to extradite him because he might face the death penalty.

When someone up there pointed out that they had no business keeping him in custody if they weren't going to extradite him to the U.S., the Canadian government found itself in an interesting position: Turn a suspected serial killer loose in Vancouver, or send him back to face a possible execution in the U.S.

They sent him back to the U.S.