Attorney says woman yelled racial slurs at children before mom was shot, killed
Florida's Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods said the shooter, who is white, and the mother had a long-standing "neighborhood feud" about her four children.
More and more people are calling for the arrest of a white woman accused of hurling racist slurs at her neighbor’s children before a shot rang out and killed the mom.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump called Ajike “AJ” Owens’ death an “unjustified killing.” According to NBC News, he said Owens’ children were playing in a field close to an apartment complex in Ocala, Florida, when the white woman, 58, “began yelling at them to get off her land and calling them racial slurs.”
Crump said Owens’ children unintentionally left an iPad behind, which the woman then took. She allegedly tossed the device when one of Owens’ children rushed to get it, striking the youngster and shattering the screen.
After learning what had occurred, Owens crossed the street to speak with her neighbor. A shot came from behind a closed door, striking and killing Owens.
During a news conference on Monday, Owens’ mother, Pamela Dias, said her daughter was being protective when she went to her neighbor’s house in search of explanations for how she treated her children.
“The mother, the protector of her children, she wanted to know why this happened,” Dias said, NBC reported. “A closed, locked door. The door never opened. My daughter, my grandchildren’s mother, was shot and killed with her 9-year-old son standing next to her. She had no weapon. She posed no imminent threat to anyone.”
Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods did neither confirm nor deny Crump’s claims, telling reporters on Monday that he was not “going to stand here and tell you what they’re putting out there is inaccurate,” but he wasn’t entirely sure.
However, the sheriff said the shooter and Owens had a long-standing “neighborhood feud” about her children, and there was a heated conversation when she arrived at the woman’s house that night. The shooting, which occurred around 9 p.m., may have been seen by at least two of Owens’ four children.
“The children are a big part” of answering many of our questions, Woods added.
Woods said detectives are attempting to ascertain whether Florida’s “stand your ground” law applies to the shooting. The law states that Florida residents are permitted to use lethal force to defend themselves from imminent danger or death, a right that extends outside the confines of their homes.
Family attorney Anthony D. Thomas urged swift justice and noted that the neighborhood would keenly watch how the sheriff’s office conducts the case. Woods promised Owens’ family that his office would use every tool to pursue justice.
Bishop J. David Stockton III, president of the Marion County NAACP, said the shooting is the most recent instance of Black people going about their daily lives only to encounter senseless violence.
“The truth is we’ve gotten to a point where Black folks are almost living in a day where we are afraid to go outside,” Stockton said, NBC reported. “Our children and adults deserve to live in a world where they do not live in fear of their neighbors.”
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