In 2005 she moved to the Tennessee Senate to fill an unexpired term representing the 33rd district, which was composed of part of Shelby County.
[2] In the August 3, 2006, primary, she had won the Democratic nomination for another term in the Tennessee Senate, but shortly thereafter she announced the abandonment of her re-election campaign for "health reasons."
On July 16, 2007, she pleaded guilty to one count of bribery in exchange for the prosecution's agreement to drop five charges of extortion, each of which could have carried a twenty-year sentence.
[2] In her plea bargain, she admitted she split a $11,500 bribe with an accomplice who was her contact with FBI agents impersonating crooked businessmen.
[2] As of mid-July 2007, Operation Tennessee Waltz had produced indictments against eleven individuals and, including Bowers, convictions for ten of them.