A white Florida woman told investigators she fired a shot through her door at a Black neighbor because she panicked as the other woman pounded heavily on her door and threatened her amid an ongoing dispute over the neighbor's children, according to a video statement played in court Wednesday.
The mother of the woman who was fatally shot disputed that, telling reporters at a news conference that Susan Lorincz was not in fear for her own life but was intent on harming Ajike “A.J.” Owens on June 2, 2023, in Ocala, Florida.
Lorincz is on trial for manslaughter in the shooting.
"She set out to cause harm. She set out to kill. That’s exactly what she did,” said Owens' mother, Pamela Dias. “She has no regard for any form of human life. Certainly, not my family.”
An all-white, six-person jury with two alternates was seated Monday to hear the evidence, according to the Marion County court clerk. The trial is expected to last all week.
In a recorded interview with Marion County detectives the day of the shooting, Lorincz insisted repeatedly she was in fear for her life as Owens — who weighed about 290 pounds (130 kilograms), according to an autopsy — pounded on her door and yelled at her. The confrontation happened after Lorincz allegedly threw skates and an umbrella at Owens' children as they played outside. Lorincz denied throwing anything at the kids.
She said she fired a single shot with her .380-caliber handgun through the door, striking Owens in the chest. Lorincz said she could not see who was outside the door but was just trying to get Owens to “go away.” Owens, 35, was not armed.
“I was never intending to kill. I was shaking. I was just so distraught at that point in time," Lorincz said in the interview. “I felt like I was in mortal danger."
The shooting was the final act in a dispute between Owens, her children and Lorincz over their playing in a grassy area near both of their homes. In the video statement, Lorincz said she felt harassed by the children for most of the three years she gad lived there.
“Every time they see me, they get together and scream and yell,” Lorincz said, denying accusations that she used racial slurs against the children,
Lorincz, 60, faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of manslaughter. She said the frequent confrontations with Owens and her children led her to jam a chair against the door as protection at night.
State Attorney William Gladson has said his office contemplated filing a second-degree murder charge but that prosecutors concluded there was insufficient evidence that Lorincz had “hatred, spite, ill will or evil intent” toward Owens. Lorincz also was not charged immediately in the case, leading to protests at the courthouse.
Ocala is about 80 miles (130 kilometers) northwest of Orlando in central Florida.
Susan Lorincz, left, listens to testimony during her trial Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024 in Judge Robert Hodges' courtroom in Ocala, Fla. as her Defense Attorney Amanda Sizemore also listens. (Doug Engle/Ocala Star-Banner via AP)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris is announcing a plan to give Black men more economic opportunities and other chances to thrive as she works to energize a key voting bloc that has Democrats concerned about a lack of enthusiasm.
Harris' plan includes providing forgivable business loans for Black entrepreneurs, creating more apprenticeships and studying sickle cell and other diseases that disproportionately affect African American men.
Harris already has said she supports legalizing marijuana and her plan calls for working to ensure that Black men have opportunities to participate as a “national cannabis industry takes shape.” She also is calling for better regulating cryptocurrency to protect Black men and others who invest in digital assets.
The vice president's so-called “opportunity agenda for Black men” is meant to invigorate African American males at a moment when there are fears some may sit out the election rather than vote for Harris or her opponent, Republican former President Donald Trump.
The vice president unveiled the plan Monday, ahead of an evening campaign rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, where she was to appear with Democratic Sen. John Fetterman. Her push comes after former President Barack Obama suggested last week that some Black men “aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president.”
The Harris campaign also has been working to increase support among other male voting blocs, including Hispanics, by founding the group “Hombres con Harris,” Spanish for “Men with Harris.” The latest policy rollout is notable because it comes with the stated purpose of motivating Black men to vote mere weeks before Election Day.
As her campaign has done with the “Hombres” group, Harris’ team plans to organize gender-specific gatherings. Those include “Black Men Huddle Up” events in battleground states featuring African American male celebrities for things like watch parties for NFL and NCAA football games. The campaign says it also plans new testimonial ads in battleground states that feature local Black male voices.
Cedric Richmond, co-chair of the Harris campaign and a former Louisiana congressman who is Black, said Harris wants to build an economy "where Black men are equipped with the tools to thrive: to buy a home, provide for our families, start a business and build wealth.”
Black Americans strongly supported Joe Biden when he beat Trump in 2020. Harris advisers say they are less worried about losing large percentages of Black male support to the former president than that some will choose not to turn out at all.
Trump, too, has stepped up efforts to win over Black and Hispanic voters of both genders. He has held roundtables with Black entrepreneurs in swing states and will sit for a townhall sponsored by Spanish-language Univision this week. He also has sought to openly stoke racial divisions, repeatedly suggesting that immigrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally are taking jobs from Black and Hispanic Americans.
Harris' new round of proposals includes a promise that, if elected, she will help distribute 1 million loans of up to $20,000 that can be fully forgivable to Black entrepreneurs and others who have strong ideas to start businesses. The loans would come via new partnerships between the Small Business Administration and community leaders and banks “with a proven commitment to their communities,” her campaign says.
The vice president also wants to offer federal incentives to encourage more African American men to train to be teachers, citing statistics that Black males made up only a bit more than 1% of the nation's public school teaching ranks in 2020-21, according to data from the National Teacher and Principal Survey.
Harris also is pledging to expand existing federal programs that forgive some educational loans for public service to further encourage more Black male teachers. She also wants to use organizations like the National Urban League, local governments and the private sector to expand apprenticeships and credentialing opportunities in Black communities.
The vice president's advisers have been urging her to talk more about cryptocurrency as a way to appeal to male voters. Her campaign said that as president, Harris will back a regulatory framework meant to better protect investors in cryptocurrency and other digital assets, which are popular with Black men.
Harris also promised to create a national initiative to better fund efforts to detect, research and combat sickle cell disease, diabetes, prostate cancer, mental health challenges and other health issues that disproportionately affect Black men.
A recent poll conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found about 7 in 10 Black voters had a favorable view of Harris and preferred her leadership to that of Trump on major policy issues including the economy, health care, abortion, immigration and the war between Israel and Hamas. There was little difference in support for Harris between Black men and Black women.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., Sunday, Oct. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign event at East Carolina University, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024, in Greenville, N.C. (AP Photo/David Yeazell)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., Sunday, Oct. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
