Painter man convicted of all charges in double murder case

By Linda Cicoira

After deliberating for three hours and 15 minutes Friday, an Accomack Circuit Court jury convicted a Painter man of the shooting deaths of a local couple, robbery of those victims, four related firearms offenses, concealing and defiling the bodies, and destroying evidence in 2020.

A long-form presentence report was ordered for 44-year-old Julian Travis Scarborough, of Linhaven Circle. For each of the murders alone, the defendant could be sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. Scarborough is already serving 15 active years for drug distribution. Sentencing was set for Nov. 21.

The victims were 36-year-old Princeton Howard Bragg and 38-year-old Lolita Monique Boggs, also of the Painter area. The two had a total of 17 children. Their bodies were found in their car in secluded woods near Doughty Farm Road, not far from the defendant’s home. Bragg’s body was in the trunk. Boggs’ body was on the floor of the back seat. Both had been shot numerous times.

Scarborough was also indicted on a count of first-degree murder of the couple’s unborn child. That charge was not prosecuted. The death was not mentioned during the trial but was part of the autopsy report that was given to the jury.

Dozens of the victims’ relatives attended the four-day trial. Just before the jury came out from deliberations, Judge Lynwood W. Lewis Jr. warned spectators that outbursts to the verdict would not be tolerated and would result in fines of $250.

Once the court adjourned and everyone began to file out, praises and cries could be heard. One young family member did a cartwheel on the courthouse green.

The case was complicated with 100 search warrants and 70 pieces of evidence, three murder weapons, and likely more participants in the crimes.

Commonwealth’s Attorney Spencer Morgan said as a whole the evidence pointed at Scarborough whose DNA was on the inside of Bragg’s out-turned pants pockets, his cell phone was pinged in the same areas off the same cell tower at the same times that the victims’ phones pinged, he sought to buy firearms that night, and questioned a neighbor about the comings and goings of the victims.

“There are no circumstances that are good where you have your hand in someone else’s pocket,” said Morgan. “There’s even fewer when it is a dead man.”

The Eastern Shore Drug Task Force suspected Bragg was a drug dealer and had put a camera near his house on Coal Kiln Road. Scarborough, who was a police informant, was caught on video surveillance when he kicked in their door after the couple disappeared. During testimony, the defendant said he was mad that Bragg had ignored his request to buy cocaine and had previously made him wait for five hours for a drug delivery. He broke into the house to steal Bragg’s stash.

It was concluded that the couple was killed elsewhere because there were no riddled windows or damages to the car.

     Defense lawyer Patrick Bales contended that there was reasonable doubt. He said his client would not have needed to kick in the door if he had committed the crimes because he would have had a key, his DNA was not found anywhere inside the car, and DNA that linked him could have belonged to his son, who was also a suspect at some point. Bales also said that Scarborough was looking to buy guns so he could resell them.