‘Justice for my daughter’: Family speaks after Ocala mother shot through door
OCALA, Fla. (WCJB) - The Marion County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting death of a mother in Ocala as the family demands justice.
On Monday afternoon, the family of Ajike “AJ” Owens held a press conference at New St. John Missionary Baptist Church with Attorney Anthony Thomas and Bishop J. David Stockton, the president of the NAACP of Marion County.
The family is calling for the shooter to be arrested. A few hours earlier, Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods gave an update on the case.
Woods says last Friday, deputies responded to a reported trespassing situation at 1662 S.W. 107th Ln., Ocala. Deputies found Owens suffering a gunshot wound. She later died at the hospital.
The family named the shooter as Susan Lorincz, 58. They say she harassed the children in the neighborhood calling them racial slurs, slaves, and the N-word.
The sheriff would not release the identity of the shooter. He did explain that a dispute between Owens’ children and the resident led to Owens confronting the woman. Her 9-year-old child was next to her when Owens was shot.
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“To know her, is to know her kids are everything,” said Pamela Dias, the mother of Owens. “We are here on behalf of the four kids here without a mother.”
Woods responded to criticism the sheriff’s office was not moving fast enough in the case.
“When you get to the scene, sometimes you only get one side of the story,” said Sheriff Woods. “We’re not cold-hearted bastards to interview children the night they possibly watched their mother die.”
The family explains prior to the shooting, Owens’ children were playing in a field next to the home. Lorincz approached the children and allegedly began yelling at them to get off the land.
The children left an iPad in the field which the woman confiscated. When one of the kids went back to the home to retrieve the device, a pair of skates was thrown and hit a child.
The children explained the situation to their mother and Owens went to the home to speak to the woman. When Owens knocked on the door, the woman fired through the door.
The attorney says Owens knocked once on Lorincz’s door. When she did not respond, Owens said, “I know you hear me.”
Woods says he is working on determining exactly what was said between the two women at the doorway. The sheriff could not say how many shots were fired.
Woods says there had been an ongoing neighborhood feud, with complaints made about the children. Half a dozen incidents have been called in over the last year.
Kim Robinson-Jones, the best friend of Owens, explained she lived at the unit before Owens and had negative experiences with Lorincz. She also explains her children regularly played in the same field with permission from the landowner.
“She made sacrifices as a single mom to be there for them,” said Kim Robinson-Jones, the best friend of Owens. “She would never want to miss a football game or cheerleading practice.”
The sheriff’s office has been in contact with the state attorney’s office. Woods says they are working to determine if the shooting falls under the self-defense provisions of Florida Stand Your Ground law.
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“I am here for the family to provide all of my resources,” said Woods. “My heart goes out to the family.”
“We support the sheriff in doing what’s right, we just request he do it right now,” said Stockton. “Black folks are almost living in a day where they are afraid of going outside.”
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