Timothy Brandon Bowers. (Mug shot and truck photo from Washington County Sheriff’s Office)
An Alabama man who sat expressionless with a parrot on his shoulder on a Florida street Friday night got himself a ride to jail after he allegedly admitted to deputies that “there was nothing wrong with him, he was just high, and his drug of choice was mushrooms.”
Timothy Brandon Bowers, 38, faces felony drug charges, according to a Washington County Sheriff’s Office news release.
An arrest report obtained by Law&Crime lays out the case. It started on Friday at 1:44 a.m. when a deputy was dispatched to a suspicious vehicle on a street in Washington County. Once there, the deputy saw a silver Chevrolet Silverado parked mostly in the grass, but the rear of the vehicle was in the roadway. The deputy saw a man, later identified as Bowers, sitting in the front seat.
“The male was facing forward and as I stood there the male turned and faced me. He was staring at me with a blank look on his face,” the report said. “I opened the driver’s door to contact him. It was obvious that the male was under the influence of some type of narcotic.”
When asked to exit the vehicle, Bowers started arguing with the deputy. Authorities noted in the report that Bowers had a parrot on his right shoulder, a large hunting-style knife in the driver’s door and a black handgun on the center console.
Bowers was ordered out of the vehicle, and he resisted, the document said.
“I was trying to pull the male from the vehicle, and he grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me towards him,” the police report said. “I instructed him to let go of me. The male continued to be noncompliant. The male then leaned towards the firearm, and I deployed my department issued taser. The taser probes struck the subjects in the torso and he leaped out of the vehicle.”
Another deputy arrived and took the suspect to the ground, but the suspect stood up with the deputy on his back. The first deputy deployed a Taser a second time, but the driver continued to resist after being told several times to get on the ground and place his hand behind his back, the document said.
The Taser was fired a third time with no results, authorities said. The suspect continued to fight. He allegedly grabbed the deputies and swung and threw elbows to strike them.
During the fight with deputies, the suspect grabbed one of their holstered duty weapons — a .40 caliber Glock 22, the arrest report said.
“I began striking the male in the torso and face,” the police report said. “The male then began to comply, and he was placed in hand restraints. The male was bleeding from his nose and face, and I called for Washington County EMS to respond.”
During a search, deputies said they found a golf ball in his pants. Authorities also found his wallet, identified him and secured the parrot in the vehicle before placing it in a pet carrier. The bird did not appear to be injured.
Deputies confiscated the knife and the firearm — which was a black plastic toy gun. Deputies also seized a plastic zip lock bag with an unknown powder inside on the driver’s floorboard, a pink and green package on the driver’s seat labeled Diamond Shruumz, and a Mentos container with green powder that tested positive for psilocybin. The Diamond Shruumz package said it contained 30% mushroom extract. Authorities also found a vape cartridge that tested positive for THC.
When a deputy asked Bowers if he wanted to speak with him, he responded, “f— off.”
“Mr. Bowers would get agitated and start cussing and tell Deputy Tate and I that he was going to ‘f— us up.’” the report said. “Mr. Bowers also stated a few times that there was nothing wrong with him, he was just high.”
Bowers was medically cleared and taken to the Washington County Jail.
The sheriff’s office took the opportunity to remind the public, “If you SEE SOMETHING — SAY SOMETHING.”
“We cannot stress the importance of reporting suspicious activity, especially during the holiday season,” said Washington County Sheriff Kevin Crews. “If you have any reason for concern, make the call, we are here to make sure you and your neighborhoods are safe.”
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