Who is Joseph O Boyle? Man pleads guilty to killing chiropractor over failed jaw pain treatment

Pennsylvania resident, Joseph O Boyle, pleaded guilty to fatally bashing a chiropractor in the head for failing to treat his long-standing jaw pain on Friday.

Reportedly, Dr. James Sowa was murdered in November 2020, and Joseph O Boyle, 22, of Bensalem, admitted legal liability on counts of criminal homicide, criminal trespassing, and possession of a weapon of crime.

As per security footage obtained by law enforcement officials, two days after Halloween 2022, Joseph O’Boyle entered Sowa’s residence, which doubled as the doctor’s office, and walked out in 52 seconds. Prosecutors also quoted that they discovered evidence that the defendant committed the act in less than a minute.

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Joseph O Boyle convicted of murdering Chiropractor James Sowa

According to the acquired court documents, Joseph O Boyle started having jaw clenching in April 2019. There were a few other prolonged issues, such as schizophrenia, aggressive behavior, and pain.

O'Boyle had a medical appointment with Sowa in September 2020. According to Boyle's relatives, he went to the chiropractor for his jaw problems, but the treatment proved ineffective. He intended to sue Sowa for exacerbating his misery.

Instead, Boyle went to the doctor's house and repeatedly rammed the blunt instrument into the debilitating James Sowa, ultimately killing him.

According to the authorities, he hit the chiropractor three times in the back of the head. The initial attack resulted in two skull fractures for Sowa. He was shot in the jaw several more times as he lay on the ground. Later, an autopsy revealed six hexagonal bruises on the deceased man's chin, indicating where the defendant narrowed down the attack.

Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub said the attacker targeted the doctor’s head and jaw and termed the method of death as,

“Poetic perverse irony”

According to investigators, surveillance footage showed Joseph O Boyle rushing up on Sowa's driveway shortly after 8:30 a.m. He moved out of the camera's view, then reappeared a minute later, racing down the driveway.

The footage also helped detectives trace their suspect to a white Nissan Altima and snap the license plate number. The vehicle was linked to O'Boyle's home on Bensalem's Byberry Road.

As per reports in the Courier Times, the accused's father confronted him about the chiropractor's death a few days later. O'Boyle became annoyed and rubbed his jaw. After that, his father hired an attorney and tried confronting him again. The final discussion was more constructive, and he admitted to homicide to his parents.

On Nov. 10, detectives filed a search warrant for the home. In O'Boyle's room, they spotted a packed suitcase. He pounced on a detective and hit him multiple times while investigators were around. O'Boyle had to be subdued by various officers. The assaulted detective received emergency treatment for temporary unconsciousness.

Along with criminal homicide and trespassing, Joseph O'Boyle has been charged with causing reckless endangerment to the officer at duty.

Prosecutors argued,

"the indictment should be murder in the first degree or at the very least second degree because he was also breaking into the doctor's office and home that day."

Both of these offenses would result in mandatory life sentences. On the other hand, the defense contends that he did not break into Sowa's home office and is contemplating third-degree murder charges.

Public Defender Joseph Haag brought out the history of Joseph O Boyle and stated that Joseph has schizophrenia during the plea hearing. He stopped taking his medicine three months before Sowa was killed, according to court documents.

A sentencing hearing is now scheduled for June 6, 2022.