It has been seven years since Edgewater Police suspended its investigation into the death of local resident Ashlyn Bowman, ruling her cause of death “undetermined” — a decision that continues to frustrate the teen’s family and friends.
Now, eight years after Bowman’s death, the case has been officially reopened, and some of Bowman’s childhood friends are hoping to find more answers while honoring her memory through a new charity initiative.
“The case is reopened,” Edgewater police Sgt. Stephen Binz told The News-Journal Tuesday morning. “I’m going back through the information, looking at the supplemental reports that have been completed — making sure no stone was left unturned.”
Bowman case suspended in 2017: Edgewater police suspend investigation into the death of Ashlyn Bowman
The case became an “active investigation” at the end of July, Binz said, though he could not reveal why the department decided to reopen it.
What happened in the Ashlyn Bowman case?
Bowman was 18 when she disappeared in June 2016, several weeks before her remains were found near a wooded area near Pullman Road in Edgewater.
She was last seen June 21 of that year jogging by Rotary Park on West Park Avenue and again June 22 at a nearby house where she was reportedly acting “erratic,” according to the Volusia Sheriff’s Office.
A resident on Wildwood Drive called Volusia County dispatch to report a suspicious person, Edgewater Police said. The caller reported seeing a female walking around her property. She confronted the female, “who became confrontational and swung a garden log at her,” the report stated.
Bowman reportedly left the property as the resident called the police. Officers responded and searched the area but didn’t find Bowman — only her backpack inside Rotary Park, according to the report.
On Aug. 9 of that year, surveyors clearing land near Pullman Road — a location two blocks north of where police searched for her in June — discovered human remains that were later determined to be Bowman’s.
In April 2017, the county’s Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death as “undetermined” and due to the condition of the body, a subsequent toxicology report was inconclusive, according to police.
Childhood friends create foundation in honor of Bowman
Emily Hummer was Bowman’s childhood friend when they both lived in Port Orange, but the pair lost touch after Bowman moved to Edgewater.
Since her friend’s death and the case’s suspension, Hummer and others took to social media to voice their opinions about what might have happened to their friend and their suspicions of possible foul play.
Hummer said she and those helping her have gathered and provided some material to the local police department, which they hope can contribute to the investigation.
Binz said he is working with “stuff that has been provided to me — I can’t say whether or not it was initially reported.”
“None of the stuff that has been provided to me is recent,” he said, adding that some of the material he received “was obtained years ago.”
Despite the attention she and others have received online, Hummer clarified that they are not monetizing their content — most of which has been shared on TikTok.
However, Hummer said she hopes to use the opportunity to use any monetization that comes their way to put into a foundation.
“We actually just started the foundation this month,” Hummer said of the Ashlyn Bowman Foundation (or ABF), over which she will preside, in an interview in August. “We are still building our board of directors and looking for people in the community who are willing to step up and be a part of the board and we are being established.”
Hummer added she has heard from some local businesses who have shown interest in supporting the initiative.
The foundation’s mission, Hummer said, will be to “protect the youth by providing mentor-led mental, academic, athletic and social groups hoping to prevent teen drug addiction.”
“Because that had a heavy hand on what happened to Ashlyn, and we’re hoping to help prevent what happened to her from happening again.”
Hummer didn’t specify the details of Bowman’s struggle with drugs, but said her relationship with her friend grew “distant” during the time Bowman was going through programs for “behavioral issues.”
In a Facebook post last month, the foundation called on volunteers to contribute in several possible ways, including:
- “Lead a volunteer club at a middle/high school: A club leader would meet weekly with students (during the school year) that sign up for their club and guide them through multiple volunteer expeditions that benefit a cause voted on by them!
- Provide a program/class: Have any special skills that you think could benefit ABF Kids? Maybe you own a business (such as a karate instructor) that would donate their time and mentor youth in need!
- Guide a classroom (elementary, middle, and high school) through a singular activity that benefits a cause of their (or their teachers’) choosing: While instructing the students on their activity, one of our mentors will teach kids about the importance of volunteer work and share about our anti-drug mission. Sound like a lot? Don’t worry! These are group outings for our volunteers.
- Join the Fundraising Committee: The efforts of our Fundraising Committee are what allows ABF to sponsor kids for tuition to different programs, fund our club and classroom projects, and spread our message to the youth of Volusia County.”
Hummer added that her friend’s death left her with “a gaping wound” and that Bowman is the main drive behind the initiative, but she has also seen others in her life struggle with drug abuse.
“It’s definitely close to my heart to just prevent anybody going through the same trauma I had as a result of being related to addicts and being around that lifestyle, (which) has definitely impacted me as an adult,” Hummer said. “And I want to help prevent that from happening to the youth of Edgewater and all the way through Volusia County and the state of Florida.”
‘I’m willing to do whatever it takes’
Devon Shaw, also a friend of Bowman’s since 2012, will be the foundation’s vice president, and he plans on being “heavily involved.”
“Because of the cause and what it stands for, it has a very deep meaning with me,” Shaw said in an interview last month.
Shaw, who was born and raised between Edgewater and New Smyrna Beach, moved out of state in 2014 and had only spoken to Bowman occasionally before her death.
“It had been about two years since we had actually seen each other in person,” he said.
Shaw said he struggled with addiction when he was a teenager, which he said played a big part into his decision to get involved with the foundation.
“I personally feel like no child should have to endure that kind of struggle,” he said. “If there is anything that adults who have been through that before, and know the pain that comes with it, can do to help prevent that in the future, I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”
Cold cases: Volusia Sheriff’s Office asks FDLE for help with solving Laralee Spear’s 30-year-old murder
Shaw added that what helped him most through his addiction was a “support system I had around me that I didn’t know that I had.”
“That’s what children need,” he said. “There are kids living in abusive households who turn to drug addiction, children who go through loss that turn to addiction.”
While the foundation’s work will focus on its mission, it is also offering a $5,000 reward to anyone “who has information that leads to a conviction in (Bowman’s) 2016 cold case.”
To learn more about the foundation and how to help, visit ashlynbowmanfoundation.org.
