Bowling v. State

The defendant did not establish an expectation of privacy in the medical records from his hospital admission after an accident that occurred when defendant shot the victim in the head while she driving a van in which the defendant was the sole passenger.

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Following a trial, a jury convicted appellant Larry Bowling of felony murder and aggravated assault in connection with the shooting death of Melody Harrell. Bowling appeals from the denial of his motion for new trial,1 arguing that a search warrant for his medical records and the introduction of the records into evidence violated his constitutional rights; the trial court erred in admitting his custodial statements; and his trial counsel was ineffective. We affirm. 1. The evidence at trial authorized the jury to find that on the evening of April 23, 2004, Bowling, victim Harrell, and several of Bowling’s family members went to a bar in Buford, the Hideaway, to celebrate Bowling’s birthday. Bowling drank shots of liquor and began to disturb other customers. Around midnight, police responded to a call from the Hideaway. Personnel from the bar reported that Bowling had struck Harrell and needed to leave. Bowling was in the parking lot when police arrived. He refused to leave at first but ultimately departed in a van driven by Harrell.

At approximately 2:42 a.m. on April 24, 2004, Gwinnett County police officer Miles Shapiro responded to a reported traffic accident in the Bona Road area. Upon arriving, Shapiro observed a van that had crashed into the right front corner of a house at 615 Bona Road and saw Bowling standing over Harrell, who was lying in the driveway with a large amount of blood around her head. Shapiro asked Bowling what happened, and Bowling replied that he accidentally shot Harrell when a gun discharged from his ankle and Harrell, who was driving, lost control of the van. Shapiro asked where the weapon was, but Bowling stated that he did not know. Shapiro decided to take Bowling into custody. He handcuffed Bowling’s right wrist through Bowling’s belt and beltloop but left the left wrist free because Bowling was complaining of a shoulder injury, and he had Bowling lie on the ground. Shapiro again asked Bowling about the location of the gun. Bowling said that he thought it was in the van.

Bowling v. State

The defendant did not establish an expectation of privacy in the medical records from his hospital admission after an accident that occurred when defendant shot the victim in the head while she driving a van in which the defendant was the sole passenger.

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