Woman denied protection from ex. Days later, he killed her.
Editor’s note: This story includes a reference to a case of domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs help, see the resources at the end of this story.
Two days before police say Audrey Petersen was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend, she filed for a temporary injunction seeking protection from him, court records show.
A judge denied Petersen’s request. Now, a Tampa Bay lawmaker is calling for that judge to resign.
Petersen, 61, filed a fivepage petition Feb. 7 seeking protection from Francis Scoza. People who knew Petersen told the Tampa Bay Times that she had recently ended a more than 20-year relationship with Scoza, 71.
In the petition, Petersen wrote that Scoza repeatedly sent her unsettling text messages over a weeklong period about their relationship. She also wrote that Scoza had handguns “in his condo and possibly in his car.”
Court records show that Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Doneene Loar denied Petersen’s request for a temporary injunction and a hearing was set for Feb. 20. Scoza was served with a notice of the hearing on Feb. 9, court records show.
Later that day, both he and Petersen would be dead.
Clearwater police say Scoza forced his way into Petersen’s home on the 2300 block of Hillcreek Circle East, in the Countryside area, shortly after 8 p.m. As Petersen fled to a neighbor’s house, Scoza shot her multiple times before shooting and killing himself in the same neighbor’s yard, police say.
Republican U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna issued a statement Feb. 14 calling for Loar to resign, saying she “personally experienced this judge’s shortcomings in her rulings.”
In September 2021, when Luna was running for
Congress, Loar dismissed a temporary stalking injunction against Luna’s opponent, who Luna said had plans to kill her. In Luna’s case, Loar said she dismissed the injunction because the law requires two instances of harassment in order for an injunction to be upheld.
In her statement Feb. 14, Luna said Petersen was “brutally murdered” as a result of Loar’s “completely flawed ruling.”
“I am calling for Judge Loar’s immediate resignation,” Luna said in the statement. “As a result of her poor judgment, she has failed residents in Pinellas County and failed victims of domestic violence.”
In a statement emailed to the Times, Steve Thompson, a spokesperson for the Pinellas County circuit court administration, said that while the court is saddened by Petersen’s death, Loar could not legally grant an injunction because Petersen’s petition did not contain enough information.
“Ms. Petersen’s petition did not contain enough detail for the judge to determine there had been multiple episodes of willful and malicious acts which had no purpose other than to harass the petitioner, and which would cause the petitioner substantial emotional distress,” Thompson wrote in the statement, adding that the judge did grant Petersen a hearing “to further explain and have an opportunity to be heard.”
Petersen’s petition
Petersen’s handwritten petition detailed some of the text messages she received from Scoza between Jan. 29 and Feb. 7.
On Jan. 29, Petersen wrote, Scoza verbally abused her at Norton’s Eastside Sports Bar and Grill in Clearwater. She texted him that night, telling him to leave her alone, the petition states, and he responded with “NEVER.”
The petition states Scoza also texted her on Jan. 31: “You took 20 yrs of my life. I’m not done. Be careful.”
About 2 a.m. Feb. 2, Petersen wrote, Scoza texted her, “I miss you.”
At 6:36 p.m. the same day, he texted her from the road behind her house, saying he wanted to see his dogs.
He then revved his engine and sped off, the petition states.
When Petersen called police about the incident on Feb. 2, they contacted Scoza by phone that day, she wrote in the petition.
After being contacted by police, Scoza texted Petersen at 10:11 p.m.: “You past the line,” the petition states. Petersen noted that Scoza was a “poor speller.”
When Petersen told him to leave her alone, he responded the next day: “I don’t think so,” the petition states.
In that same text, Scoza said, “Kelly, Michelle and Jennifer will miss you,” referring to Petersen’s adult daughters, according to the petition.
Petersen wrote that she did not respond to any of Scoza’s texts, but that she called police on Feb. 2, 3 and 7 and filed reports. In the petition, she wrote that police warned Scoza not to call her, text her or drive by her home.
“She was legitimately scared”
Experts in domestic violence law told the Times that applying for an injunction can be difficult. If a petitioner doesn’t include enough information, it can be denied, according to Karen L. McHugh, a lawyer at CASA, a domestic violence advocacy center in Pinellas County.
“Sometimes judges are looking for a little more detail or to get police reports attached to it. But if she (Petersen) applied by herself, how would she know?” McHugh said. “No one understands what to put in the injunction to get approved.”
Typically, the petition for an injunction includes a small box with only a couple of lines, McHugh said. Most people don’t know that they can attach more pages.
Judges will typically only approve injunctions that include a detailed history of stalking and abuse, and that burden of proof lies on the victim reporting the crime, McHugh added.
McHugh said the legal standards of due process often provide more protection for the alleged abuser than the victim. This is why domestic violence victims are often reluctant to leave a threatening situation, she said.
Julie Weintraub, president of the Gold and Diamond Source and founder of Hands Across the Bay, a philanthropic organization in the Tampa Bay area that assists victims of domestic violence, said she believes Pinellas County courts have a history of mistreating domestic violence victims.
“The court can be demeaning and intimidating and treat them terribly,” she said. Historically, she said, courts tend not to side with victims, and domestic violence isn’t taken as seriously as it should be.
“If judges have evidence, they should err on the side of caution,” Weintraub said. “There’s no reason that she (Petersen) shouldn’t have been granted the injunction.”
Laura Highman was Petersen’s supervisor at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, where Petersen worked as a registered nurse for 13 years.
Highman said Petersen was always looking out for her patients. “She remembered everything about them. She remembered their birthdays and the names of their aunts and uncles.” After patients left the hospital, they would drop by just to see her, she said.
“She never came into work without saying good morning and never left without saying good night. And she was always telling people to be safe,” Highman said.
Highman says Petersen often confided in her about Scoza’s behavior. She said Petersen told her the threats and stalking began after they broke up at the end of January. “It escalated very quickly,” Highman said.
Highman said Petersen told her that Scoza would wait in her driveway before she left for work and would come back after she got home. He had a combination to the lock on Petersen’s house and would let himself in, which scared her into changing all the combinations, Highman said.
Highman said Petersen told her that Scoza would frequently drive up and down the road behind her house.
“She was legitimately scared,” Highman said. “She changed her routine, she was coming to work early and leaving a bit earlier. She called the police and even had their cellphone numbers saved in her phone. She was constantly texting them letting them know what was going on.”
Highman said Petersen took a day off work to get a gun permit. Petersen told her that she was supposed to pick up the gun on Feb. 10 — the day after she was killed.
According to court records, Scoza’s ex-wife also filed for an injunction seeking protection from him in 2006. Court records show that injunction was also denied.
“It doesn’t make any sense to me, like why would you wait until it’s too late?” Highman said of Loar’s decision to deny Petersen’s injunction. “I mean, we all knew he had a gun.”
Petersen’s daughters declined an interview request from the Times. But in a post on Facebook, one of her daughters, Jenn Petersen, said her mother’s pleas were not taken seriously.torreslesl
“You did everything you knew how to do, and those in places of authority — to serve and protect — failed. You put your faith in those who you thought were best fit to help you and they failed,” Jenn Petersen wrote, addressing her mother.
“They failed despite your asking for help. They failed despite your pleas. They did not listen. They did not care.”
How to get help
If you are in immediate danger call 911.
The Florida Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24 hours a day at 800-5001119 or TDD at 800-6214202. Hotline services are provided in English, Spanish and Creole.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24 hours a day at 800-799SAFE (7233) or TDD at 800-787-3224. You can also text “START” to 88788.
Domestic violence warning signs
Abuser isolates victim from friends or family.
Victim is encouraged or forced to stop participating in activities important to them.
Abuser controls finances or puts victim on an allowance, asks for explanations of spending.
Victim is blamed for their feelings, yelled at or made to feel “small.”
Abuser criticizes and controls victim’s appearance, including what they can wear.
Abuser abandons victim in places they don’t know.
Abuser keeps victim from eating, sleeping or getting medical care.
Abuser throws or punches things around victim.