Bowman, who leads the company that distributes "Girls Gone Wild"-branded videos in Australia and for mobile content outside the U.S., was behind the wheel of the vehicle that killed a 21-year-old woman last Wednesday night.
Prosecutors charged 34-year-old Bowman on Monday with leaving the scene of a collision; he could face up to four years in state prison if convicted.
Bowman is scheduled to be released Monday evening after he posted a $50,000 bond. The bail was significantly reduced from $2 million.
Bowman has hired Blair Berk as his defense attorney.
Berk, who was not available for XBIZ comment, has represented numerous celebrities such as Paul Reubens, Reese Witherspoon, Mel Gibson, Cameron Diaz, Ozzy Osbourne, Lindsay Lohan and Queen Latifah.
The victim's family was inside the court Monday morning waiting for Bowman's arraignment. The family has hired a private investigator — John Nazarian of Beverly Hills — to look into Bowman's background.
Bowman made headlines in Australia a few years ago when he tried to assemble a "booze cruise" for high school graduates and film them. Bowman, however, got so much bad press that he canceled the shoot.
"Girls Gone Wild" parent company Mantra Entertainment late Monday attempted to distance itself from Bowman.
In a release, Mantra said Bowman's company, Zeal Entertainment, was one of hundreds of third-party international distributors that "Girls Gone Wild" used in the past to distribute its content around the globe.
"'Girls Gone Wild' and Mr. Bowman's company parted ways nearly a year ago and "Girls Gone Wild" has no affiliation with Mr. Bowman," Mantra said in a statement.
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