Protesters unhappy with charge filed in AJ Owens' death
With raised fists and shouting "Justice for AJ," dozens of people protested in front of the Marion County Judicial Center on Monday.
The group, about 40 people, gathered to show their frustration with State Attorney Bill Gladson's decision to charge Susan Louise Lorincz with manslaughter instead of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Ajike "AJ" Shantrell Owens.
Owens shooting
A single mother of four − three girls and a boy, ages 3 to 12 − Owens was shot and killed in Quail Run, where Lorincz and Owens both lived.
Owens, 35, went to Lorincz's residence because Lorincz had yelled at Owens' children, used racial slurs, and threw skates at them. They told their mother.
Owens, who was Black, went to Lorincz's front door. Lorincz, who is white, shot through the closed front door and killed Owens. Lorincz told detectives the shooting was self-defense.
The shooting happened on June 2. Lorincz was arrested on charges of manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, and two counts of assault and battery on June 6. She remains at the Marion County Jail, where bail is set at $154,000.
Gladson announced Monday that he has charged Owens with manslaughter with a firearm and one count of assault, a second-degree misdemeanor, for allegedly threatening one of Owens' children. If convicted, Lorincz could face 30 years in prison.
The protest
Residents and community leaders are not happy at Gladson's filing decision, and still want him to consider upping the charge to second-degree murder.
Decision: State won't upgrade manslaughter charge in Owens shooting; victim's family disappointed
It's not the first time protesters have voiced their displeasure with Gladson.
Hours before Lorincz's arrest on June 6, protesters marched from close by downtown to the courthouse and made their way to the State Attorney's Office. There, they met with Gladson and told him that Lorincz needed to be arrested and the charge should be murder.
Gladson said his decision is based on the law.
Protesters have their say
At the protest, which lasted nearly an hour, speakers took turn praying, reading aloud from the Bible and shouting the names of AJ and her children. At different intervals, there was a four-minute silence, signaling the number of days Lorincz was free after the shooting before she was taken into custody.
The protesters displayed small and large colorful signs with messages such as "No justice, No Peace," "Black Lives Matters," "Black moms matter" and "Black communities matter," and "Shame on you Bill Gladson."
There were slogans shouted for the crowd to repeat, such as: "It's our duty to fight for our freedom."
Beverly Rose, one of the protesters, told a Star-Banner reporter she would have done the same thing as AJ if she was in Owens' shoes the night of June 2.
Rose said Owens was defending her children and was killed because of it.
Linda Peoples, who was born and raised in Ocala, simply said: "I'm furious about the charges." Calling the filing decision "unfair and hurtful," Peoples said there are two different judicial systems: One for Black people and one for white people.
Francesca Mitchell said she wants to see "Justice for AJ Owens." Mitchell said she wants to encourage and mobilize the community to stand up for lives lost to gun violence and for AJ Owens.
"I was very surprised," Mitchell said about Gladson's filing decision.
Mitchell hopes Owens' death will not be in vain and wants to continue moving forward to bring change to the community.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Protesters want murder charge, not manslaughter in AJ Owens' death
