OCALA, Fla. (WFLA/AP) — A Florida woman who was accused of killing her neighbor after a feud was given bond at a hearing Friday.
A judge set bond for Susan Lorincz at a combined $154,000 on all five charges. Lorincz may not have any contact with the victim’s family, can have no weapons, must surrender her passport and wear an ankle monitor.
Lorincz is also not allowed to leave Florida.
The state asked the judge to not allow Lorincz to return anywhere near the victim’s home, but acknowledged that may not be possible because she lives there.
In a statement to investigators after the shooting of Ajike Owens, a 35-year-old Black mother of four, Lorincz was quoted as saying she had problems for two years with children in the neighborhood not respecting her — including the victim’s children, who range in age from 3 to 12 years old.
The day of the shooting, Lorincz told investigators she had a headache and that “neighbors were outside screaming and yelling, kids were running around” in a grassy area separating two apartment quadruplex buildings, including hers. She said Owens angrily confronted her and threatened to kill her.
According to the sheriff’s timeline, Lorincz called the department at 8:54 p.m. the night of the shooting to say kids were threatening her and trespassing. She had previously placed “no trespassing” signs in the grassy areas, despite it not being a part of her rental. Lorincz said in court she owns no property at all.
While deputies were on their way, more calls came in to 911 about shots heard in the same area. At 9:04 p.m., one of Owens’ children called 911 to say his mother had been shot, according to the timeline. Lorincz also called again, saying she had shot a woman through her door. Deputies arrived about three minutes later to find Owens lying on the ground. She was pronounced dead at a hospital a half hour later.
Lorincz claimed “that Owens banged on the door so hard everything started shaking and she thought the door was going to come off,” and that she panicked and said to herself “’Oh my god she’s really going to kill me this time.’” That’s when she fired a single round from her .380-caliber handgun, the report says, noting that Lorincz also had a second handgun in the home.
“Lorincz advised that she purchased the firearm for protection after an altercation with the victim,” it says.
Lorincz, 58 is charged with manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault Sheriff Billy Woods said in a statement.
During a news conference Wednesday afternoon, the victim’s family, friends and community leaders joined civil rights attorney Ben Crump in thanking the sheriff for making the arrest, while calling for justice for Owens.
Authorities had delayed her arrest for several days while looking into a possible “ stand your ground ” claim.
The sheriff has said that since January 2021, deputies responded to at least a half-dozen complaints between Owens and Lorincz.
Owens’ mother, Pamela Dias, has said she will now raise her four young grandchildren. The funeral for Owens is set for Monday in Ocala.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
