Victim’s family asked to stop talking about SC sex assault case, It’s ruining accused man’s ‘bright future,’ court docs allege

ORANGEBURG, S.C. (WCSC) - Three families of women who say they were sexual assault victims are asking a judge to broaden a restraining order after they say the accused man’s parents reached out to them.

Sarah Ford, an attorney with the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network, filed the request Thursday to modify a permanent restraining order issued against Bowen Gray Turner to include Turner’s parents, Walter and Jennifer Turner and their family, in order to prevent them from “communicating or attempting to communicate with the victims and their families directly or indirectly.”

Turner, who is currently 19-years-old, faced multiple first-degree criminal sexual conduct charges. He was accused of sexually assaulting a teenager in June of 2019 in Orangeburg County while out on bond for sexually assaulting a different teenager just months before in Bamberg County in October of 2018. Court documents show he was also accused of sexually assaulting a third teenager before that in April of 2018 in Calhoun County.

Earlier this month, as part of a deal with prosecutors, Turner pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of first-degree assault and battery and was sentenced to five years of probation.

A permanent restraining order granted to the families of three victims stated Turner was prohibited “from abusing, threatening to abuse or molesting the victims or members of the victims’ families,” from entering or attempting to enter their homes, places of work or education; or attempting to communicate with the victims or their families.

Court documents filed Thursday, however, allege that the mother of one of the victims, Michelle Stoller, was contacted on April 13 by a man whose voice she did not recognize stating he was reaching out “on behalf of Bowen Turner.”

“The individual apologized on Bowen Turner’s behalf and indicated that he has a bright future that is being dampened by the Stoller family sharing their story with the media,” court documents state. “Ms. Stoller expressed that her family was sharing the story of her late daughter, Dallas, and that Dallas’ legacy was their focus.”

The document also alleged that Karl Stoller, Dallas Stoller’s father, received two phone calls on April 16 that Caller ID labeled as coming from Jennifer Turner.

The Stoller family and other victims and their families spoke about the case earlier this month before Turner entered the guilty plea.