Former Fort Bliss Soldier Gets 35 Years in Stabbing Death

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — A former Fort Bliss soldier has been sentenced to 35 years in prison after being convicted of murder in the 2016 stabbing death of a transgender woman.

Anthony Michael Bowden was sentenced Wednesday. Bowden, who was 21 at the time of the slaying, was sentenced by the jury that last week convicted him of fatally stabbing Erykah Tijerina.
According to testimony, Tijerina, whose legal name was Eric Tijerina, was a transgender woman who worked as a prostitute.
Defense attorneys argued that Bowden killed Tijerina in self-defense. They claimed Tijerina was attempting to blackmail Bowden and had raped him and was trying to do so again when Bowden killed Tijerina.
Prosecutors argued Bowden had willingly had sex with Tijerina and went to Tijerina's apartment with the intent of killing her.