Photo: Mark Makela/Getty Images
Susan Lorincz, the 58-year-old woman who was arrested for shooting through her door and mgunning down his African-American neighbor in front of her 9-year-old son in central Florida, was charged this Monday with involuntary manslaughter and assault.
State Attorney William Gladson said that his office was contemplating filing a second-degree murder charge, but that prosecutors concluded there was insufficient evidence that Lorincz had “hatred, spite, ill will or bad intentions” towards Owens.
“Deplorable as the defendant’s actions were in this case, there is insufficient evidence to prove this specific and required element of second-degree murder,” Gladson said in a statement.
“I am aware of the desire of the family and part of the community that the defendant be charged with second degree murder. My obligation as a State Attorney is to comply with the law in each case that I prosecute,” added the prosecutor.
Lorincz, arrested earlier this month following the fatal shooting of Ajike Owens in Ocala, Florida, was indicted on one count of manslaughter with a firearm and one count of assault.
If convicted, Lorincz faces up to 30 years in prison.
Anthony Thomas, an attorney for the Owens family, said the decision not to file a second-degree murder charge was disappointing.
“We firmly believe that justice demands nothing less. The fact that the prosecutor failed to charge Susan with what actually reflected her wanton and reckless behavior undermines our ability to obtain real accountability,” Thomas said in a statement.
The facts
Owens, a mother of four children, the eldest of whom is 12, was shot June 2 through the door as she stood in the driveway of Lorincz’s home. The bullet hit the upper part of her chest, so she died in a short time.
Lorincz said she had a headache the day of the shooting and that children were running and screaming outside her apartment.
According to the sheriff’s office, Lorincz also threw a skateboard at Owens’ 10-year-old son and then threw an umbrella at him and his brother.
Apparently Owens went to claim her neighbor for the insults she had made to her children for playing on nearby land and because she had an IPad that the children left behind.
The woman said Owens threatened to kill her and hit the door with such force that she feared it would break down. She then fired a single round from her .380 caliber handgun, the sheriff’s report says, through the locked door, fatally striking Owens.
The fact that Loricz was not arrested or charged immediately after Owens’ death sparked outrage among the African-American community, which mobilized to demand justice.
Sheriff Billy Woods justified that Lorincz was not in custody because they had to determine whether a controversial Florida self-defense law known as “Stand Your Ground” could be applied to the case.
Such a law that allows a person who believes they are at risk of death or serious bodily harm to use “deadly force” instead of fleeing the scene.
In an interview with MSNBC on Monday, Owens’ mother said her daughter acted “as any parent would.”
“She just knocked on the door, she was unarmed, no weapons. She just wanted answers. She wanted to talk to another adult about the incident with her 9-year-old son,” she said.
Several area residents said in interviews with NBC News that Lorincz has a history of bullying children in the community and using racial slurs against them.. Some even said that he recorded minors and sometimes pointed weapons at them.
A judge granted Lorincz $154,000 bond and ordered her to wear an ankle monitor and stay away from Owens’ family.
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