'So out of it' stabber, attempted carjacker given drug treatment order on his birthday

A serial criminal who was “so out of it” when he committed “very bad offences” – a stabbing and an attempted carjacking – has been released from custody on a drug treatment order.

William James Bowman appeared in the ACT Supreme Court on Monday (16 October), his 23rd birthday, where he was convicted and sentenced to a total of three years and three months’ jail, to be suspended from that day for a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order (DATO).

“Hopefully, it’s a happy birthday to you,” Acting Justice Richard Refshauge told him after handing down his sentence.

An Uber driver had just picked up a passenger from the Abode Hotel in Phillip at around 7 pm on 19 July 2022 when Bowman approached and got into the front passenger seat.

He demanded the keys to the car and yelled at the driver to get out before grabbing his arm and trying to punch him multiple times.

The driver got out of the car and tried to walk towards the hotel, but Bowman followed and ran at him with a knife.

“Help me, that guy has a knife,” the driver yelled as he ran while Bowman tried to chase him.

Meanwhile, the female passenger left the Uber and returned to the hotel.

Not long after failing to catch up with the driver, Bowman approached a Skoda Kamiq parked in the carpark of the nearby Hellenic Club.

The driver of this car was sitting in his vehicle when Bowman opened his door and started yelling.

He couldn’t understand what Bowman was saying to him and tried to calm him down, but Bowman then stabbed at the man’s chest several times.

He pushed his attacker away and locked the doors before Bowman ran away. He was left with a small stab wound to his chest.

This man told the court he didn’t feel “vindictive” towards his attacker, but his main concern was that he had to experience his 12-year-old daughter’s significant distress that “she could have lost her Daddy that evening”.

Acting Justice Refshauge said after police arrested Bowman, he delivered a very high alcohol reading. He also said there had been no planning in the offending and the stab wound was minor.

Bowman eventually pleaded guilty to charges of wounding and attempted aggravated robbery after originally pleading not guilty and being committed for trial.

He spent 257 days in pre-sentence custody before appearing in court on Monday.

Acting Justice Refshauge said he had committed 11 criminal offences since becoming an adult, including offences of violence.

Bowman had described his childhood as “terrible”, saying he had been exposed to childhood disadvantage, and began drinking alcohol when he was 12 years old, as well as meth from when he was about 14.

Acting Justice Refshauge said his substance use started from quite a young age and before he could make an informed choice.

On the day of the offences, he said he’d used three points of meth and drank a lot of alcohol.

Bowman said he couldn’t remember what he had done and was “shocked” when he woke up in hospital. He claimed he’d overdosed and had no intention of committing the offences, describing it as “a wake-up call”.

Acting Justice Refshauge said he had been assessed as likely having a severe substance use disorder at the time of the offences. He had also expressed a wish to reform.

He suspended Bowman’s jail sentence from Monday when making a DATO for the three years and three months, ending in April 2026.

“The bottom line is these were very bad offences,” the acting justice told him.

“They were a serious attack on the community, but also on individuals who didn’t deserve it.”

He noted that “having been so out of it”, Bowman had been “shocked” when he heard about the offences.

The acting justice hoped this was a wake-up call for him to address his drug and alcohol use.

“Don’t stuff up,” he warned him.