On Wednesday, June 11, 2025, Columbia County Circuit Judge Melissa Olin sentenced 49-year-old John Leonard Bowen, Jr. to life in prison after finding him guilty of Second-Degree Murder in the death of 18-year-old Coyoete Kathren Cheyenne Turner. Bowen also pled to a charge of Tampering with Evidence and received an additional 23.1-year sentence, to be served consecutively.
The case began on September 3, 2023, when deputies from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office responded to 981 SW Haltiwanger Road in Lake City at approximately 11:37 a.m. following a report of a body discovered at the entrance to the property. Upon arrival, deputies located Turner’s partially burned body.
During the investigation, numerous individuals were interviewed, but inconsistencies in Bowen’s statements regarding his whereabouts, combined with physical and electronic evidence, led investigators to focus on him as the primary suspect. Following a post-Miranda interview, Bowen was arrested and charged with Turner’s murder on September 7, 2023.
The investigation involved coordinated efforts from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office Patrol and Criminal Investigations Divisions, Third Judicial Circuit State Attorney Investigator, Florida Highway Patrol, Medical Examiner’s Office of Jacksonville, State of Florida Fire Marshal’s Office, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
Turner’s family and friends received closure with the conviction and sentencing nearly two years after her death.
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