Born in New Orleans in June 1954, Fowler was the eldest of an upper-class family's two children. He graduated from Tulane University School of Law in 1976, where he was classmates and good friends with Russell Washington. He served as a private attorney for 23 years and then is hired as A.D.A. for the New Orleans office in 1999, reuniting him with Washington. He has been married for 25 years, and has a son and two daughters, Joe (born 1981), Sammi (born 1990) and Charlotte (born 1996). Fowler is last seen with his family at Washington's funeral, and is said to be in the running for interim D.A.