Opinion ID: 612705
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Bowers' underlying 1974 conviction

Text: Bowers, a former Black Panther, was convicted for the 1973 murder of U.S. Park Ranger Kenneth C. Patrick in Point Reyes National Seashore. On April 26, 1974, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California sentenced Bowers to life in prison. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed his conviction on appeal. United States v. Bowers, 534 F.2d 186, 187 (9th Cir.1976). The Ninth Circuit stated that Bowers and two other men had been stopped by [Ranger Patrick] while on an expedition to poach deer, and appellant Bowers had shot [Ranger Patrick]. Bowers, 534 F.2d at 188. According to the Parole Commission, Bowers shot Ranger Patrick in the chest after Ranger Patrick stopped their car to investigate. Bowers jumped out of the car and shot Ranger Patrick a second time, hitting him in the left wrist. Ranger Patrick then staggered down the road and fell into the bushes. The driver brought the car alongside the dying ranger; Bowers attempted to shoot him a third time, in the chest, but his gun misfired. Bowers then attempted a fourth shot but missed. As the car left the scene of the shooting, Bowers asked one of the other men if he had seen the ranger twitch when Bowers shot him as he was lying on the ground. Several days later, Bowers told another friend who suspected him of the killing that Yes, I had to get me one and that the ranger had kicked like a chicken when [Bowers] shot him. Despite his conviction for murder, Bowers has always maintained his innocence and contends he was targeted for prosecution based on his Black Panther membership. In this context, Bowers sometimes refers to himself as a political prisoner. Although there is no support for Bowers' claim that he is a political prisoner, the validity of his 1974 murder conviction is not before us. We are concerned only with the actions of the Parole Commission 30 years later during Bowers' mandatory parole proceedings, and specifically, both the February 17, 2005, and June 14, 2005, reopening of Bowers' case.