Polk County Man Re-Sentenced to Life Imprisonment for Murder of Haines City Police Officer
| U.S. Attorney’s Office November 01, 2012 |
TAMPA—U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. today re-sentenced Charles Andrew Fowler (33, Polk County) today to life in federal prison for the March 3, 1998 murder of Haines City Police Officer Christopher Todd Horner.
Following the murder of Officer Horner in March 1998, four individuals were ultimately found guilty in connection with his death. Testimony at Fowler’s June 2008 trial proved that Fowler fired the shot that killed Officer Horner. At the conclusion of that trial, the jury found Fowler guilty of two counts related to the murder of Officer Horner.
In September 2008, Judge Moody sentenced Fowler to life in federal prison, followed by 10 additional years. After the sentencing, Fowler appealed. That appeal, which went to the U.S. Supreme Court, eventually resulted in the dismissal of one of the counts of conviction. Today’s re-sentencing related to the remaining count.
This case was investigated by the Haines City Police Department, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys James Muench and Joseph Swanson.