‘There’s blood everywhere’: Murder trial for Viola Bowman begins in Clay County

Jurors listened Tuesday to audio of a frantic 911 call made by a woman accused of murdering her husband in Clay County.

Tuesday was the first day of testimony in the trial of Viola Bowman, 60, who is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action.

“Hurry,” Bowman was heard on the recording saying to a dispatcher. “There’s blood everywhere.”

Albert “Rusty” Bowman was shot and killed in the couple’s Kansas City home on Nov. 7, 2012.

During opening statements Tuesday, assistant prosecuting attorney Spencer Curtis alleged the defendant fired two rounds at Rusty, striking him in the head and the chest.

Curtis said testimony will show that firefighters who responded to the scene found Bowman’s “demeanor was odd.” She allegedly told first responders that she had been at Walmart and that someone had broken in. However, items like a laptop, car keys and a wallet had not been stolen.

Prosecutors said Bowman benefited from a life insurance policy and that statements she made to police were “rife with inconsistencies.” Curtis repeatedly said Bowman’s behavior was “odd.”

Bowman’s attorney Horton Lance said Bowman loved her husband of 35 years. Bowman was at Walmart when the homicide occurred and when she arrived home, she encountered the most “traumatic, terrifying event of her lifetime,” he said, adding that she was in a state of shock.

She cooperated with police and has no criminal record, Lance told jurors.

Bowman was arrested in January 2015 and has been in jail awaiting trial since then. Her case was highlighted in a Star investigation about the Missouri State Public Defender system because it had been continued dozens of times as public defenders struggled with overwhelming caseloads.

Last year, Bowman maintained her innocence and rejected a plea deal that would have sent her home with time served.

This story was originally published September 14, 2021 at 2:32 PM.

Katie Moore

The Kansas City Star

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Katie Moore was an enterprise and accountability reporter for The Star. She covered justice issues, including policing, prison conditions and the death penalty. She is a University of Kansas graduate and began her career as a reporter in 2015 in her hometown of Topeka, Kansas.