Attorneys of Ajike ‘A.J.’ Owens’ family unhappy with Susan Lorincz’s, charges, bail amount
The white Ocala woman accused of killing a Black mother of four was granted bail in court Friday morning despite opposition from attorneys representing the victim’s family.
Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, is accused of killing her neighbor, 35-year-old Ajike “A.J.” Owens, with whom she’d had a longstanding dispute, on June 2.
Anthony Thomas, an attorney representing Owens’ family, spoke on the family’s behalf during the hearing. He said the family is disappointed that more severe charges are not being pursued.
“The family doesn’t feel as though this was an accident,” Thomas said. “Or if, you know, Susan was just cleaning her gun and bullet, you know, the gun fires and it ends up going through the door and killing someone. That’s not what happened at all.”
“She meant to point that gun at the door, she knew who was standing on the [other] side of that door and she also knew that she didn’t have any sort of threat on her life when she pulled that trigger,” Thomas said. “And so we feel as though because Susan did not have any respect for human life whatsoever, it should be a murder two (second-degree murder) charge. And so right now, our goal is to make sure that we keep pushing for the State’s Attorney’s Office to investigate the murder two charge.”
Lorincz was arrested on Tuesday and has been charged with manslaughter with a firearm, a first-degree felony punishable with a maximum 30 years in prison. She has also been charged with culpable negligence, two counts of simple assault and one count of simple battery, all of which are second-degree misdemeanors punishable with a maximum 60 days in jail each. She pleaded not guilty to all charges.
During her second appearance in court on Friday, she was granted a $154,000 bail by Judge Robert Hodges, $150,000 for the manslaughter charge and $4,000 for the four misdemeanors.
While the family was opposed to Lorincz being granted bail, they believe that the bond amount granted should match Lorincz’s crimes.
Thomas said that prosecutors asked for a $200,000 bond.
If Lorincz posts a bond and is released, she will have to wear an ankle monitor and cannot leave the state, according Hodges’ order. She is also forbidden from having contact with the victim’s family and from possessing any firearms.
According to her arrest affidavit, Lorincz frequently argued with Owens’ children because they played in a field near her home, which she considered private property. Neighbors later told police that Lorincz frequently antagonized the children. Lorincz told law enforcement she had called some of the neighborhood children the “n-word” at times in anger.
During an argument with the children on June 2, which was overheard by a neighbor, Lorincz threw a roller skate at one of them, the affidavit said. When the children told their mother, Owens, and her 10-year-old son, went to Lorincz’s home and began knocking on the front door and demanding she come outside. Lorincz ultimately shot Owens once through the door with her Remington 380 pistol, fatally striking Owens in the chest.
Later, while speaking with law enforcement after the shooting, Lorincz said Owens’ children, the eldest of whom is 12, allegedly had threatened to kill her in the past, and that a confrontation with Owens led her to purchase the Remington. Lorincz said Owens threatened to kill her while at her door, leading to her firing her weapon at the victim.
Lorincz wasn’t arrested until four days after the shooting. Marion County authorities didn’t initially arrest Lorincz due to Florida’s controversial “Stand Your Ground” law. Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods stated Lorincz could only be prosecuted if the state could prove she was not defending herself when she fired.
The subsequent investigation established that Lorincz actions were not justifiable under the law, Woods said.
