W’Burg man who shot at mother ruled competent to stand trial

A Williamsburg man, who allegedly shot at and attempted to rob his mother during a January incident that led to a day-long manhunt, has be ruled competent to stand trial.

Brady Bowman, 25, appeared in Whitley Circuit Court for a competency hearing Monday afternoon, which was held privately behind closed doors due to the confidential medical information that was discussed during the hearing.

Despite the hearing being held privately, the Whitley County Circuit Court Clerk’s office has confirmed that the evaluating physician who worked with Bowman at the Kentucky Correctional Psychiatric Center deemed him competent and a ruling of competency has been made by the court.

A follow-up court date is currently scheduled for Dec. 7 at 9 a.m.

On the morning of Jan. 6, Bowman’s mother placed a 911 call from a neighbor’s residence stating that Bowman had tried to rob and her before then shooting at her.

She told police that she was in her living room on her sleeper sofa when Bowman came in “high on methamphetamine,” armed with a rifle and demanding that she give him all of her credit cards. When she refused, Bowman allegedly fired at her, barely missing. After allegedly attempting to shoot his mother, Bowman was reportedly seen fleeing the scene by multiple witnesses.

According to Whitley County Sheriff’s Lt. Wayne Bird, who provided testimony during Bowman’s preliminary hearing in January, evidence of the gunshot was found near the sofa, which he said entered the wall in a downward trajectory and went through two walls into Bowman’s room.

During an investigation in the home, Bird said police found a safe, which Bowman’s mother opened for them. Inside, were several guns, according to Bird, including a .308 rifle that he said had been modified “on an assault rifle platform.” Police also allegedly found scopes, multiple fully-loaded magazines, a variety of ammunition and survival gear. Bird said they also located a bandolier full of ammunition and marijuana plants hanging/drying inside the home.

More information was later developed that Bowman had fled his mother’s home in a vehicle, which police began searching for. Bird said that later that day, police located the vehicle near Little Wolf Creek Road and attempted to perform a traffic stop, though Bowman sped away and into a driveway before fleeing into the woods on foot.

K-9 units were then dispatched to help search for Bowman. During the search, police located a backpack believed to belong to Bowman. Bird stated that it was full of “everything you would need to survive in the woods for a week or longer.”

A Kentucky State Police helicopter was used to search the area where Bowman fled, which detected a heat signature coming from a tree stand up in a mountainous area, where Bowman was eventually found just after 11 p.m. the same day. According to Bird, there were several heaters in the tree stand where Bowman was found.

Bowman was indicted in February on charges of first-degree wanton endangerment, attempted murder, first-degree robbery and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He currently remains jailed in the Whitley County Detention Center.