Man gets life in prison for killing wife, burning body in Henderson
A Las Vegas judge sentenced a man to life in prison with the possibility of parole on Thursday for strangling his wife and burning her body in Henderson last year.
Freddie Wright, 44, pleaded guilty in September to second-degree murder for killing his wife, Janell Bowen. Her burned body was found inside a metal drum on the 1700 block of Sunset Road, near Arroyo Grande Boulevard, on Nov. 21.
Wright and Bowen had six children together and were married for 15 years.
In an interview with police after his arrest, Wright admitted to strangling Bowen and leaving her body in a trashcan at an “abandoned hotel” overnight, according to his arrest report. He later returned, took her body near the Whitney Mesa Recreational Trailhead in Henderson and set her on fire.
Wright told police he killed his wife after she told him she was having a relationship with someone else, according to the report.
Prosecutors on Thursday asked for a life-in-prison sentence, arguing that Wright was a five-time felon.
“In this particular case, what he did subsequent to the homicide demands a life sentence,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Marc DiGiacomo told the judge. “The desecration of this victim’s body in the manner that he did adds so much additional pain to the people you’re about to hear from.”
At the end of the hearing, District Judge Tierra Jones sentenced Wright to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 10 years.
Daniel Martinez, Wright’s public defender, argued that his client suffered from PTSD from being shot while he was living in North Carolina. He said that while Wright had previously spent a significant amount of time in prison, he was attempting to turn his life around, working as a barber and performing as a busker on Fremont Street with his children.
“This was a domestic incident that was aggravated by untreated trauma,” Martinez said. “And I certainly believe, given his history, given how well he was doing for more than a decade before this happened, that Mr. Wright does have the ability to rehabilitate himself.”
Wright read from a statement, addressing the judge and apologizing to Bowen’s family. He said he was “extremely intoxicated and high” when he killed his wife and attempted to dispose of her body. He said he was “hearing a voice in my head” telling him to cremate Bowen.
“So that’s why I started that fire. I just did not know what to do next,” he said.
Bowen’s family members who attended Thursday’s hearing wore T-shirts with Bowen’s picture and the phrase, “In loving memory of Janell.” Her mother and brother addressed the judge, reading from statements.
Wendy Calorusso, Bowen’s mother, said her daughter had a “heart of gold.” She told the judge about a time when Bowen got in trouble as a kid for stealing Calorusso’s clothes, only for Bowen to say she wanted to be just like her mom when she grew up.
“I had known from day one that she had decided to be like me, and so much of me was a mom,” Calorusso said.
She said Bowen was a “patient and loving” mother to her six children. She told the judge she wanted “justice for my little girl,” and asked for Wright to be sentenced to life in prison.
“The day I received the horrific news of my daughter’s murder is a day I will always remember, because it is the day that it went dark,” she said. “Standing here before you almost a year later, I have yet to see the light again.”
Bowen’s brother, Joshua Card, questioned what his sister did to deserve her death. He also asked for Wright to receive a life sentence.
“Freddie was supposed to protect her, this was the man who vowed that he loved her, who was supposed to be her partner, her safe place,” Card said.
The judge said that Thursday’s hearing would bring closure to the criminal case, but that she doesn’t know if she can bring “real closure” to Bowen’s family. Jones spoke directly to Wright, addressing the state of Bowen’s body when she was found.
“I do agree with your wife’s brother that you stood before God and you took a vow that you were going to protect her, and you did completely the opposite,” Jones said.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.
