-----------------------------
Video interview with some of Tyree Bowie's jurors and alternate jurors: (The jury returned the verdict in this murder case in 10 minutes):
-----------------------------
PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Bowie claims Hower left out pivotal information that could have led the judge to conclude Bowie didn’t kill Dante. Hower knew Dante suffered several medical issues related to abuse or neglect, including a sexually transmitted disease, in the weeks leading to his death, yet he never included that information in the affidavit, the lawsuit said. Dante’s injuries included brain bleeding, which the lawsuit said can develop hours or even days after the initial trauma. Hower also omitted Bowie’s statements that he heard a bang and muffled cry through the wall at his apartment shortly before Mullinix requested to go to the hospital, which Martin said could provide a plausible explanation for when the fatal head injury occurred."
----------------------------------------------
PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "Hower’s document included Bowie’s statements about feeding Dante the animal crackers, but told the judge there were no animal crackers anywhere in the vehicle when police searched it later. Hower never mentioned Dante choked on animal crackers, nor that Bowie tried to resuscitate Dante and clear his airways, resulting in Dante expelling the animal crackers through his nose. Bowie told Hower the residue was on his jeans and on the inside of his car. Hower personally collected samples of the residue from the inside of the car and from Bowie’s jeans, but left that information out of court documents, too, the lawsuit said. Bowie told Hower he’d find a pack of animal crackers in the trash at his apartment. After arresting Bowie, Hower visited the apartment and refused to collect the bag of animal crackers as evidence. When one of Bowie’s friends collected the bag and gave it to Bowie’s attorney as evidence, Hower threatened to arrest her for evidence tampering. “We don’t need it. He’s guilty,” Hower said, the friend testified at Bowie’s trial."
---------------------------------------------
STORY: "Cop’s omissions may put York man’s lawsuit back in federal court after judge’s dismissal," by Reporter Jon Bergmueller, published by Pensive, on March 6, 2026. (Jon Bergmueller writes about high-profile court cases in central Pennsylvania prioritizing high-impact crimes such as homicides, abuse and crimes committed by public servants. He also focuses on civil proceedings involving government, public policy and corporate accountability. Jon is a 2020 graduate of Shippensburg University's ACEMJC-accredited Communication/Journalism program where he led The Slate, the student newspaper. He joined the team from the Williamsport Sun-Gazette in spring of 2022, where he also covered the courts. writes about high-profile court cases in central Pennsylvania prioritizing high-impact crimes such as homicides, abuse and crimes committed by public servants. He also focuses on civil proceedings involving government, public policy and corporate accountability.)
PHOTO CAPTION: "Friends and family visited the grave of two-year-old Dante Mullinix days after Tyree Bowie, once accused of murdering the boy, was released from jail following a not-guilty verdict. Dante died Sept. 6, 2018 after choking on an animal cracker. Pictured in the grey hoodie, 43-year-old Tyree Bowie, tried to save the boy's life, but was instead accused of murdering him by York County prosecutors."
------------------------------------------------
A York city man has refiled a federal lawsuit accusing a cop who charged him with murdering a 2-year-old of misleading the judge who signed off on his arrest warrant.
The move byTyree Bowie renews his efforts to bring malicious prosecution claims against York City Detective Kyle Hower over what Bowie says are omissions and falsehoods that misled a magistrate judge.
The move byTyree Bowie renews his efforts to bring malicious prosecution claims against York City Detective Kyle Hower over what Bowie says are omissions and Bergmueller
Hower charged Bowie with criminal homicide after two-year-old Dante Mullinix lost consciousness in Bowie’s car. Bowie said he rushed Dante to the hospital after he choked on Teddy Graham crackers and lost consciousness.
Jurors acquitted Bowie of murder after deliberating for 10 minutes following a four-week trial in December 2022 after evidence showed Dante had been subject to neglect and abuse from someone other than Bowie in the weeks before he died.
Bowie is seeking to recover at least $225,000 for his legal defense and lost wages over his four-year incarceration in York County Prison.
The new complaint added 70 pages to the lawsuit, although some entire pages of new content are mangled by redactions making the complete set of facts unclear.
Those redactions were put in place to comply with still-standing orders from the criminal case which prevented some exhibits and evidence related to children and youth records from being publicly released, according to Aaron Martin, Bowie’s civil attorney.
The redactions also obscured digital conversations between Bowie and Mullinex and other interviews conducted by police.
To win a malicious prosecution case, Bowie needs to show there was no probable cause behind the homicide charges, among other elements.
It’s a hard burden to overcome, especially because a magisterial district judge already found there was probable cause against Bowie. To overcome that ruling, Bowie needs to argue Hower misled the magisterial district judge by providing false information or leaving information out.
Martin argues Hower had no probable cause to arrest Bowie — in other words, it was more likely than not that Bowie didn’t kill Dante.
Evidence collected after his arrest suggested Dante had been a victim of neglect or abuse by his mother, Leah Mullinix, or others close to her, the lawsuit said.
The only evidence that supported probable cause included in Hower’s affidavit was that Dante “stopped breathing” while he was alone with Bowie. Hower never explained how, why, when or if Bowie caused Dante to stop breathing while accusing him of killing the boy before arresting him Sept. 19, 2018.
Bowie claims Hower left out pivotal information that could have led the judge to conclude Bowie didn’t kill Dante. Hower knew Dante suffered several medical issues related to abuse or neglect, including a sexually transmitted disease, in the weeks leading to his death, yet he never included that information in the affidavit, the lawsuit said.
Dante’s injuries included brain bleeding, which the lawsuit said can develop hours or even days after the initial trauma.
Hower also omitted Bowie’s statements that he heard a bang and muffled cry through the wall at his apartment shortly before Mullinix requested to go to the hospital, which Martin said could provide a plausible explanation for when the fatal head injury occurred.
Hower’s document included Bowie’s statements about feeding Dante the animal crackers, but told the judge there were no animal crackers anywhere in the vehicle when police searched it later. Hower never mentioned Dante choked on animal crackers, nor that Bowie tried to resuscitate Dante and clear his airways, resulting in Dante expelling the animal crackers through his nose.
Bowie told Hower the residue was on his jeans and on the inside of his car. Hower personally collected samples of the residue from the inside of the car and from Bowie’s jeans, but left that information out of court documents, too, the lawsuit said.
Bowie told Hower he’d find a pack of animal crackers in the trash at his apartment. After arresting Bowie, Hower visited the apartment and refused to collect the bag of animal crackers as evidence. When one of Bowie’s friends collected the bag and gave it to Bowie’s attorney as evidence, Hower threatened to arrest her for evidence tampering.
“We don’t need it. He’s guilty,” Hower said, the friend testified at Bowie’s trial.
District Judge Jennifer P. Wilson previously dismissed the lawsuit because the facts in the original complaint didn’t support the arguments Bowie made in favor of keeping the case going.
The ruling was a response to motions for dismissal from the defendants, a legal buffer used to prune out lawsuits that don’t properly support the claims they are making.
In her January order, Wilson ruled there was ample probable cause to charge Bowie with homicide:
- The York County Coroner’s Office ruled Dante’s death a homicide caused by traumatic brain injury, strangulation and suffocation.
- Dante appeared to be healthy and able to walk on his own shortly before arriving at the hospital the night he fell unconscious.
- Bowie told police no other adults were present who could have caused Dante’s injuries.
- Bowie told police Dante was in his care when he stopped breathing."
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
Lawyer Radha Natarajan: Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
