JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — "I had her literally in my hands. We tried; we tried too literally do everything," neighbor Franklyn Coln said.
There are candles, a teddy bear, and flowers left behind in a make-shift memorial. Mementos and tributes to a Marion County mother lost to gun violence. It's also the spot where Franklyn Coln says he performed CPR to try and save her life.
"We tried... not just for her but her kids. Knowing that your mom got shot in front of you, that's something else and then the lady coming back out and showing herself what is that is not human," Coln explained.
Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, who is white, was arrested on charges of manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault in the death of Ajike Owens, a Black mother of four, Sheriff Billy Woods said in a statement.
She is accused of shooting Owens through her front door.
Coln says neighbors have had problems with the woman in the past. He says she didn't like when kids played in a grass area next to her home. He says he and other parents told their kids to ignore Lorincz and continue playing,but didn't expect her to take it this far.
"For us it was a pattern of her calling the cops over the kids because they were being too loud. Taking a picture of the kids, recording the kids," Coln said.
Coln says Owens once told her not to worry about Lorincz’s threats.
"'I'm not going to waste my energy; I know she's not all there.' I took her (Owen's) advice," Coln said.
He says the neighborhood hasn't been the same since Owens was killed and kids haven't come back out to play.
"We're all like family here, everyone knows everybody, and it was totally unexpected. We were all on the same page as to leaving her alone, she's not all there, she's a 58 year old lady don't mind her," Coln said.
Authorities came under pressure Tuesday to arrest and charge Lorincz, who fired through her front door and killed Owens in a case that has put Florida’s divisive stand your ground law back into the spotlight.
Deputies responded to a trespassing call Friday night found Owens with gunshot wounds.
Lorincz told investigators that she acted in self-defense, and that Owens had been trying to break down her door before she fired the gun, Woods said. She also told them that Owens had come after her in the past, and had previously attacked her.
Woods said the investigation, which included eyewitness statements, established that Lorincz’s actions were not justifiable under Florida law. Woods says the incident was a culmination of what the sheriff described as a 2½-year feud.
“Now many of you were struggling to understand why there was not an immediate arrest,” the sheriff said. “The laws here in the state of Florida are clear. Now I may not like them. I may not agree with them. But however, those laws I will follow.”
Jail records show she was booked, but did not list a lawyer who could speak on her behalf. It wasn't immediately clear when she would make her first court appearance.
