Ramone Ezekiel Bowen Sr., age 27, was shot and killed on July 31, 2014, in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 4800 block of Javelin Drive in Rockford, Illinois. The wound was to his chest and occurred during a confrontation with a friend, Michael Medearis, then 32, who fired a single-shot revolver.

Medearis was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a felon. At sentencing the judge, Fernando Engelsma, cited deterrence and imposed 15 years for second-degree murder plus eight years for the weapons conviction, to be served consecutively. Medearis expressed remorse and said he believed he was acting in self-defense.

Bowen, born September 17, 1986, in Rockford, is survived by his son, parents Angela Bowen and Curtis Robinson, a sister, and an aunt. A service was held August 7, 2014, at St. Paul C.O.G.I.C., and he was buried in Cedar Bluff Cemetery.

Did anyone in the Rockford area witness the confrontation or know more about what led to it?