Former Hagerstown man sentenced for throwing punch family believes led to city man's death

A former Hagerstown man was recently sentenced to six years in state prison for punching an older man, who died three weeks later.

Roy Dewhite Winston Jr., 29, originally faced a manslaughter charge in the death of Lester Bowers. Winston's court records state he had lived in Martinsburg, W.Va., for about a month when he was arrested, but that he had lived in Hagerstown for decades prior.

Winston pleaded guilty in October to misdemeanor second-degree assault for the August 2022 incident.

On Thursday, Washington County Circuit Court Judge Brett R. Wilson sentenced Winston to six years in state prison, giving him credit for time served in the Washington County Detention Center since Sept. 10, 2022. The sentencing was delayed to allow for a pre-sentence investigation.

Wilson called the 2022 incident "an act of vigilantism."

The punch occurred after Winston's young daughter told her parents Bowers said something inappropriate to her, and Winston waited on the porch for Bowers to arrive home, Assistant State's Attorney Chris McCormack told Wilson.

McCormack said this was "not a spur of the moment" situation as Winston waited for about two hours until Bowers arrived.

When Winston hit Bowers in the face, Bowers fell backwards and hit his head on the sidewalk, McCormack said during the Oct. 12 plea hearing.

Bowers was 75 years old, his wife clarified after the hearing.

Rhonda Bowers said after the hearing that she just wanted Winston to serve some time.

"He needs a lesson," she said. Bowers said she feels badly for Winston's family and children, but he needs to learn to control himself and think before he acts.

Bowers said her husband was a Vietnam veteran, a map reader for Army intelligence. He retired after working for UPS for 39 years, mainly making deliveries in the Berkeley Springs, W.Va., area. He had been working part-time at the Weis Market in Hagerstown's North End before he died.

They were married for 54 years, together for 56 years, she said.

The assault and factors leading to Bowers' death

Hagerstown Police responded to the 800 block of Mulberry Avenue around 12:40 p.m. on Sept. 2, 2022, for a report of an unconscious male, according to charging documents. Emergency Medical Services personnel responded and attempted life-saving measures, but Bowers was pronounced dead at the scene.

During the investigation, the responding detective learned Bowers was assaulted three weeks earlier, on Aug. 12. He arrived home and got out of his vehicle to be confronted by a man, later identified as Winston, and was assaulted, charging documents state.

Hagerstown Police responded to the assault and were told by Bowers that the suspect identified himself as the father of an 8-year-old girl that lived in the neighborhood. Bowers told police the father questioned him about making an inappropriate comment to the girl earlier that day. Bowers told police he apologized, explaining it was said in a joking manner. Bowers said the man then punched him in the face.

Bowers was knocked unconscious and the next thing he remembered, he told police, was being carried onto his porch by two people, charging documents state. Bowers had what police described in charging documents as lacerations above his left eye and to the back of his head, the only visible injuries known at the time.

Later that night Bowers went to Meritus Medical Center because he couldn't get the cut above his eye to stop bleeding, court records state. Additional testing showed more significant internal injuries, including that four areas of his brain were bleeding uncontrollably as a result of the assault, court records state.

Because of those brain bleeds, Bowers was taken off his blood thinner medication, making him susceptible to blood clots, charging documents state.

He would be in and out of the hospital until his death.

The autopsy report shows doctors determined Bowers died as a result of blood clots that traveled to his lungs, charging documents state, and that the clots formed as a result of Bowers being taken off his blood thinner, a move that was a "direct result of the assault."

Judge hears from Winston and Bowers' family

"I know I was wrong," Winston told Wilson. "I went about that the wrong way."

Looking toward Bowers' family in the court gallery, Winston apologized.

"I was childish. I was wrong and I deserve anything coming. I do, but I am sorry. I am," he said.

Defense attorney Craig Houpt told Wilson there's was no doubt what happened was a tragedy, a tragedy that started as an argument.

"One punch, we're here," Houpt said.

Houpt said Winston was not an "assailant in waiting," but a "concerned father."

Winston had some addiction issues and didn't have a perfect life, not that that was an excuse, Houpt said. He's planning to get his GED and had family in the court supporting him, including his fiancée and siblings.

Houpt asked Wilson to consider home detention to allow Winston to support his growing family.

Wilson also heard from Bowers' wife and son-in-law.

Rhonda Bowers shared photos of Bowers' initial injuries with the judge, which she described as most of the left side of her husband's face being black and blue with multiple fractures. He had difficulty eating and the assault affected his hearing, making him sensitive to noise, she said. The laceration referred to required seven stitches, she said.

Michael Pearson pointed out that his father-in-law was 75 years old, 5-foot-6, and weighed about 190 pounds — a "little old man."

He said he wouldn't guess Winston's height and weight, but that people in the courtroom could see how "grossly outmatched" his father-in-law was.

At the time Winston was arrested in early September 2022, he was listed as being 6-foot-1 and weighing 240 pounds. He was 28 years old at the time of the assault.

"(Bowers) was viciously punched" and fell back and hit his head on the road, Pearson said.

Pearson said his family believes a straight line can be drawn from the assault to Bowers' death.

Bowers had three children, seven grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren, the latest of whom was born a few weeks ago.

"Our family's patriarch was taken from us," he said.

McCormack informed the judge of Winston's past criminal record, including his role related to a home invasion that led to Winston pleading to conspiracy to commit robbery. In that case, Winston was not the suspect who assaulted the robbery victim, but McCormack said Winston helped set up the robbery and was the driver.

Winston was on probation in that case when the assault against Bowers occurred. That means he could face additional prison time related to a probation violation. Winston was sentenced to 10 years for the 2020 conspiracy incident, but almost nine years of that was suspended.

Houpt said after the hearing that while his client "perhaps has a history, his past does not define him."

Houpt was filling in at the hearing for his law partner, Lew Metzner, who was sick Thursday. Reached Monday, Metzner said, "This case was an absolute tragedy. Nobody intended for anybody to die. It was one punch and it’s horrible."

For the assault against Bowers, Wilson said Winston will need to serve 25% of the six-year sentence before he is eligible for parole.

Metzner said Winston could become eligible for parole this year.

Wilson said he didn't think Winston intended for Bowers to die, but he did intend to punch him and knew Bowers was an "elderly individual."

"We can't get around the horrible tragic truth that a person is dead," Wilson said.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Former Hagerstown man gets 6 years for assaulting man who later died