Deputy reassigned to courthouse work

SHALIMAR - Okaloosa County Sheriff's Deputy Thomas Bowman, whose Internet interaction with a witness during and after the prosecution of a criminal case led to a motion for a new trial, will return to work today.

Bowman, an investigator who had been on medical leave, will report as a member of the Sheriff's Office courthouse contingent. Sheriff Ed Spooner said the transfer is not disciplinary in nature.

"He has not been disciplined at all. He's been reassigned for a change of pace," Spooner said. "Everybody gets reassigned."
Bowman was the lead detective in an investigation that led to the arrest of Jonathan Wright.

Wright, 30, was accused of beating James "Ricky" Hines badly enough to break his jaw and nose, shatter his ear canal and cause bruises all over his body. Deputies reported that Wright also dropped 21 cinder blocks on Hines.

Wright, who was arrested Dec. 19 and charged with attempted murder, was convicted May 8 for aggravated battery. He faces 15 years when he appears for sentencing July 30.

After Wright's conviction, an attorney for his family accused Bowman of having had "a personal and unprofessional relationship" with Wright's ex-girlfriend, Jennifer Sexton.

Both Bowman and Sexton testified against Wright at the trial.

The attorney filed a motion for a new trial and produced MySpace communications between the two as evidence.

One of the e-mail contacts was made the day the Wright jury was selected.

Neither Circuit Judge Thomas Remington, who has been out on medical leave for an extended period of time, nor retired Judge Keith Brace, who is sitting in for him, has ruled on the motion.

Spooner said a Sheriff's Office internal investigation of Bowman's communication with Sexton has not turned up anything to merit disciplinary action.