A fresh Netflix documentary will delve into the disturbing real-life crime story that shook a small community when a disagreement took a deadly turn.
Scheduled for release in October, The Perfect Neighbor recounts the unsettling narrative of the connection between 35-year-old Ajike “AJ” Shantrell Owens and her 58-year-old neighbor Susan Lorincz.
In 2023, Owens, a mother of four, was fatally shot through a locked door following prolonged conflicts with Lorincz. The documentary portrays the escalating harassment Owens faced, utilizing footage from police body cameras and 911 calls. Lorincz had frequently contacted the police, alleging various disturbances caused by Owens’ children in the neighborhood, including trespassing and disruptive behavior.
The gripping documentary illustrates how multiple calls and police interventions painted Owens as a threat in Lorincz’s perspective. Tragically, Lorincz eventually shot Owens through the door, resulting in the mother’s fatal injury.
During a disagreement about Owens’ children playing in Ocala, the 35-year-old knocked on Lorincz’s secured door.
As per Owens’s family and court documents, Lorincz, who is white, directed racial insults at Owens’ Black children before the tragic shooting on June 2, 2023.
The fatal shooting was the culmination of a series of altercations between Lorincz and Owens, leading to law enforcement being called at least six times since January 2021.
The final clash was believed to stem from an earlier incident where Lorincz confronted Owens’ children and hit one with a roller skate.
While inside her residence, Lorincz used a firearm to shoot single mother-of-four Owens in the chest. Despite not testifying at her trial, Lorincz claimed she felt her life was in danger when Owens approached her door.
“I panicked and thought, ‘She’s going to kill me this time,'” Lorincz recounted to Marion County Sheriff’s investigators.
During sentencing, Judge Robert Hodges opined that the shooting stemmed more from anger than fear and that Lorincz was secure when she fired through the door.
At her trial, Lorincz invoked Florida’s “stand your ground” law, citing self-defense.