St. Petersburg Police responded to a call to check on the welfare of a woman at 5055 3rd Ave. S. at approximately 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, November 6, 2022.
Officers located the body of 60 year-old Harriet Owens inside the home with “multiple injuries.” She also had evidence of defensive type injuries.
Her son, 29 year-old Jontrell Collins, is in custody and has been charged with second degree murder. He was in the home at the time officers arrived.
Police say that Collins was living with her at the time of the death.
In May of 2022 he was arrested for felony battery on his mother. According to the arrest affidavit, he struck/punched her with a closed fist multiple times in her lip, head as well as her abdomen causing visible injury and swelling to her lip. lower right jaw as well as swelling on the left side of her head.
According to documentation on June 24, 2022, Thomas Koskinas, Assistant State Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit of Florida, concluded that, “the facts and circumstances revealed do not warrant prosecution at this time.”
Three days after those charges were dropped, he was arrested for felony domestic battery against his father. This incident happened at a different address than where his mother was living. Collins is currently on bail for that incident that occurred on June 27, 2022 where he reportedly spit and punched his father in the face/forehead. He was released on $3500 bail and outfitted with a GPS monitor along an order to have no contact with his father.
He pled guilty to felony battery on his mother for an incident that occurred on November 19, 2019. He was released after serving 111 days in the Pinellas County Jail. At that time, he reportedly struck her with a closed fist in the head causing visible swelling.
No other information is available at this time. Additional information will be provided as it is made available.