March 26, 2006 – Police arrested one of their own Saturday, saying the veteran detective murdered a woman and critically injured a man in a morning hotel shooting.
Joel Dowdye, an eight-year veteran of the Virgin Islands Police Department, was in police custody in the psychiatric ward of the Roy Lester Schneider Regional Medical Center Saturday night on suicide watch, said Sgt. Thomas Hannah, a police spokesman.
Dowdye, 38, was charged with first degree murder and attempted murder, Hannah said.
Sherett James, 22, of St. Thomas died from a gunshot wound to the head, he said.
James was dead when police arrived, Hannah said.
Daren Stevens, 32, a St. Croix TV personality also known as Bogle, was shot in the abdomen and back, Hannah said.
Stevens was in critical condition after undergoing emergency surgery at the medical center, Hannah said.
The relationship between Dowdy and the victims remains unclear.
"Unfortunately, we don't know what the motive is as to this thing yet," Hannah said.
Dowdy is scheduled to appear in Superior Court for an advice of rights hearing Monday, Hannah said.
There will be parallel investigations conducted by both the Criminal and Internal Affairs Bureaus," said Police Commissioner Elton Lewis. "The Internal Affairs portion will be conducted by personnel from our St. Croix Bureau so as to avoid any conflict of interest."
Police received an emergency phone call from the small Bunker Hill Hotel on Garden Street in Charlotte Amalie about 8:20 a.m. after five shots were fired.
Stevens was on St. Thomas to interview visiting Jamaican reggae singer Glen Washington for Stevens' WSVI Channel 8 show Entertainers' Voice.
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