Current:Home > MarketsIndexbit-Jury begins deliberations in trial of white Florida woman in fatal shooting of Black neighbor -文件: temp/data/webname/news/nam2.txt
Indexbit-Jury begins deliberations in trial of white Florida woman in fatal shooting of Black neighbor
FinLogic FinLogic Quantitative Think Tank Center View
Date:2025-04-08 18:51:36
A Florida jury began deliberations Friday in the manslaughter trial of a white woman accused of manslaughter in the shooting death of a Black neighbor amid an ongoing feud over the neighbor’s children.
Susan Lorincz,Indexbit 60, faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted in the June 2023 killing of 35-year-old Ajike “A.J.” Owens, a mother of four, in Ocala, Florida. Lorincz claimed she fired her .380-caliber handgun through her locked, metal front door in self-defense because Owens was pounding on the door and yelling loudly.
Prosecutor Rich Buxman said in a closing argument there was no evidence that Owens posed an imminent physical threat to Lorincz but came to the defendant’s house after her children complained Lorincz had allegedly thrown roller skates and an umbrella at them amid a long-running annoyance at their boisterous play outside.
“It’s not a crime to bang on somebody’s door. It’s not a crime to yell,” Buxman told jurors. “There was no imminent danger whatsoever when she fired that gun.”
A lawyer for Lorincz countered that she was frightened by Owens’ aggressive actions and was legally justified in firing her gun under Florida’s “stand your ground” law. An autopsy found Owens weighed about 290 pounds ((130 kilograms), making her much larger as well as younger than Lorincz, and the two had previous confrontations.
“She can defend herself,” said Amanda Sizemore, an assistant public defender. “She had a split second to make a decision whether or not to fire her weapon.”
Lorincz did not testify in her own defense but said in an interview with detectives that was played for jurors that she never intended to harm Owens. Still, in one 911 call, Lorincz told a dispatcher, “I’m just sick of these children.”
“She was not in fear. She was angry,” Buxman said.
The six-person jury is all white and Owens’ family has expressed surprise no Black jurors were selected given the racially sensitive nature of the case. There were protests in the Black community when prosecutors took weeks to charge Lorincz with manslaughter, a lesser count than second-degree murder which carries a potential life prison sentence.
The county court clerk’s office said in an email that eight Black people were among the 70 in the initial jury pool. In contrast, 49 were white and 10 were listed as Hispanic, two as Asian and one as “other,” the clerk’s office said, based on records provided by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Ocala is about 80 miles (130 kilometers) northwest of Orlando in central Florida. Marion County’s Black population is about 12%, according to census figures.
veryGood! (5)
Related
- Euphoria's Hunter Schafer Says Ex Dominic Fike Cheated on Her Before Breakup
- Ohio attorney general opposes speeding up timeline for lawsuit over proposed voting rights amendment
- Appeals court weighs whether to let stand Biden’s approval of Willow oil project in Alaska
- Who was James Baldwin? Google Doodle honors writer, civil rights activist for Black History Month
- Tropical weather brings record rainfall. Experts share how to stay safe in floods.
- Service has been restored to east Arkansas town that went without water for more than 2 weeks
- Whoopi Goldberg counters Jay-Z blasting Beyoncé snubs: 32 Grammys 'not a terrible number!'
- Taylor Swift announces new album, ‘The Tortured Poets Department,’ and song titles
- New Orleans mayor’s former bodyguard making first court appearance after July indictment
- U.S., U.K. launch new round of joint strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen
Ranking
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Prince William likely to step up amid King Charles III's cancer diagnosis, experts say
- What’s in the bipartisan Senate package to aid Ukraine, secure U.S. border
- LL Cool J on being an empty nester, sipping Coors Light and his new Super Bowl commercial
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- The head of FAA pledges to hold Boeing accountable for any violations of safety rules
- NLRB official rules Dartmouth men's basketball team are employees, orders union vote
- Ukrainian-born Miss Japan Karolina Shiino renounces title after affair with married man
Recommendation
North Carolina justices rule for restaurants in COVID
White House renews calls on Congress to extend internet subsidy program
Sabrina Carpenter and Saltburn Star Barry Keoghan Cozy Up During Grammys 2024 After-Party
Ship targeted in suspected Yemen Houthi rebel drone attack in southern Red Sea as tensions high
Family of explorer who died in the Titan sub implosion seeks $50M-plus in wrongful death lawsuit
Celine Dion is battling stiff person syndrome, a rare neurological disorder. What is it?
Apple TV+ special 'Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin' flips a script 50-years deep: What to know
Kelsea Ballerini shuts down gossip about her reaction to Grammys loss: 'Hurtful to everyone'