HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – Jury selection has begun in the trial of Susan Lorincz, who was arrested in June 2023 and is accused of fatally shooting her 25-year-old neighbor, Ajike Owens, a Black mother of four.
“Do you believe you can set aside anything you’ve read so you can issue a true and accurate verdict in this case?” a judge asked potential jurors about the high-profile case against the 60-year-old Lorincz.
Lorincz, 60, of Ocala, pleaded not guilty to a first-degree felony charge of manslaughter with a firearm, as well as counts of culpable negligence, battery and assault.
According to an arrest report from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Lorincz said she had a headache the day of the shooting and children were running, and yelling outside her apartment. That night, while a few children were playing basketball, Lorincz threw a pair of roller skates at them, hitting one on the feet.
Owens then came over and knocked on her door. Lorincz told investigators that Owens threatened to kill her and banged on the door so hard she feared Owens would break it down.
Lorincz fired a single round from her .380-caliber handgun, the sheriff’s report says, which went through the closed door and fatally struck Owens, deputies said.
Lorincz told investigators that she had called Owens’ children racist slurs in the months before the killing. Authorities had delayed her arrest for several days while looking into a possible “stand your ground” claim. Detectives have since said that Lorincz’s actions are not justifiable under Florida law.
After the shooting, Lorincz told investigators she had problems for two years with being disrespected by children in the neighborhood — including Owens’ children, who are ages 12, 9, 7 and 3.
Sheriff Billy Woods said that since January 2021, deputies responded to at least a half-dozen complaints between Owens and Lorincz in Ocala.
”I just remember when it first happened… hearing about it on the news.”
Owens’ family attorney, Anthony Thomas, stated that his team plans to have the children testify. Lorincz claims she acted in self-defense, fearing for her life.
Lorincz faces several charges, including first-degree felony manslaughter, which carries a potential sentence of up to 30 years in prison if convicted.