Laura Owens SHOCKED at Being Called a ‘Master of Manipulation’

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Morning, Your Honor. Morning. Just for some context, Judge. Some of the specific mitigation referenced in the defense's recommendation for Your Honor involves Mr. Maranchini and some instances that happened in California in or around 2016. [00:00:26] Speaker 2: Your Honor, this case was assigned to the county attorney's office in June of 2024 as a result of a referral from Judge Julie Mata. The judge found that Ms. Owens acted unreasonably when she initiated litigation without basis or merit. Judge Mata also found Ms. Owens acted fraudulently. We began this investigation with the interview of Mr. Eckert. Mr. Eckert provided us with data from his computer. Detective Gonzalez and I viewed the video from the civil lawsuits that were involved, from depositions that were held regarding the civil lawsuits. At that point, we obtained a search warrant for Ms. Owens' iCloud and processed an extremely large amount of data. From there, we continued to conduct interviews along with serving approximately 11 subpoenas for medical records. On January 29th, 2025, we served a search warrant at Ms. Owens' residence with the assistance of Scottsdale Police Department SWAT unit. Ms. Owens was uncooperative and resistive during this process. We seized several laptop computers and cell phones, which were later processed for evidence. We obtained Mr. Maranchini's laptop through consent. The investigation continued with further evidence and interviews. This resulted in the 14 felony counts that were charged. You know, I understand that when we look at Ms. Owens, we see she's underweight. She appears frail. She appears harmless in her size and frame. However, this is intentional. This is part of her manipulation. You know, as part of the search warrant at her residence, we located a number of syringes of Ozempic, weight-reducing drug. She was very concerned that we were going to take that. We didn't, but her main concern was, don't take my Ozempic. The appearance of Ms. Owens is part of her master of manipulation. She's a master of manipulation, and her ability is not in her physical strength, but in her focus, her tenacity, and her vindictiveness. She has a thirst for control over her victims and a clear lust for notoriety and prestige. Her talents and her abilities contrived schemes through calculated lies and deceit, and she has the ability to develop long-term plots to control people through threats and coercion. She's relentless. Her attacks become more threatening with resistance from the victims. She begins with a proclamation of love. However, when rejected, she contrives a pregnancy and begins a barrage of text messages and emails. She attempts to guilt her victims into submission. She becomes relentless in her quest and demands constant contact and reassurance from her victims. This can be seen in the text messages that she sends constantly. Ms. Owens then begins to construct her plot and her pregnancy facade. As resistance builds from her unsuspecting victim, so does Ms. Owens' threats. Threats beginning with court action, media attention, and criminal prosecution. There are three victims that have come forward. Other victims have not, all resulting in substantial legal fees, protective orders, and emotional distress. Aside from the victims that are already mentioned, Mr. Eckert and Mr. Gillespie, there are two in California. One wouldn't come forward because he's so scared of Ms. Owens and what she would do in retribution. The other is Michael Maricini. Mr. Maricini is Ms. Owens' second targeted victim, and this began in March of 2016 on a dating app. The manipulation began slowly, over about a month and a half, at which time they had a second date. They went on four dates between March and June. On Mr. Maricini's 29th birthday, Ms. Owens sent him a photograph of a positive pregnancy test. This was done to change the course of the relationship and to cause him to concentrate his attention on her. Mr. Maricini questioned the pregnancy because he always used condoms, however, could not fathom that he would fabricate something like this. Mr. Maricini was not ready to be a parent at this point. He told Ms. Owens that he would be supportive and he would co-parent if she wished to keep the child. However, they would not be in a relationship. Within weeks, Ms. Owens reported that she was pregnant with the twins. Mr. Maricini reported that Ms. Owens and her family were under the belief that they were on their way to marriage. But he was not and did not wish to have a relationship. Understanding that Mr. Maricini was slipping from her grip, Ms. Owens then told Mr. Maricini that she would terminate the pregnancy if he committed to a future with her. Ms. Owens then allegedly obtained abortion pills. Mr. Maricini agreed to stand by her during this time. Ms. Owens told Mr. Maricini that she took the pills. However, he never saw the pills and he never saw Ms. Owens take them. Following this, Ms. Owens reported to Mr. Maricini that she had an ultrasound and that the abortion failed. The twins were still there. She provided medical documents. Mr. Owens allegedly took, Ms. Owens allegedly took the abortion pill a second time and told him that this time it worked. A few weeks later, Ms. Owens told Mr. Maricini that she was pregnant again. This confused Mr. Maricini because she had told him that the pills worked a week earlier and now she was still pregnant. Ms. Owens told him that there was still one embryo, that the pills did not work. Mr. Maricini believed what Ms. Owens was telling him because her family became involved. He reported that he went to Ms. Owens, went with Ms. Owens to Planned Parenthood in Walnut Creek. Ms. Owens allegedly went to see a provider in the Planned Parenthood location, leaving Mr. Maricini in the waiting room. He sat there for about five minutes and then he saw Ms. Owens leave through his side door. When questioned, Ms. Owens told him that she had gotten more pills. However, she didn't wish to take them at the time. Mr. Maricini did not see the pills and Ms. Owens would not talk about it when asked. This went into July of 2016 when Ms. Owens now told Mr. Maricini that she had had a surgical abortion and she sent him documentation from a doctor. Ms. Owens told Mr. Maricini that the abortion was successful, but she had an egg trapped in her ovary. At this point, Ms. Owens claims to have had ovarian cancer. Ms. Owens now caused her family to pressure him into supporting her emotionally as well as physically. Mr. Maricini stated that every time something would happen, he would get pulled back into this relationship. In August of 2016, Ms. Owens told Mr. Maricini that she had her ovary removed and a surgical abortion and also sent him documentation from a doctor. The nightmare pregnancy lasted for months before turning to cancer and then threats of suicide. Ms. Owens told Mr. Maricini that if he didn't stay with her, she would commit suicide. Ms. Owens continued to barrage Mr. Maricini with text messages where Ms. Owens was wanting him to profess his love and commitment to her. Ms. Owens would become angry when Mr. Maricini refused to do so. Ms. Owens' family became involved. As a result, her father asked Mr. Maricini to stick with Ms. Owens because she was suicidal at the time. Later in 2016, Ms. Owens offered Mr. Maricini a trip to Iceland as she felt bad for what she put him through. Mr. Maricini believed that he would be going alone. This trip was slated for the time period of New Year's, 2016-2017. The trip was booked. However, he didn't know Ms. Owens was going until the day he was leaving. During the flight, Ms. Owens wanted Mr. Maricini to tell her that he loved her. She became distraught when he refused. Ms. Owens was crying and she created a scene on the flight. The rest of the trip to Iceland was not eventful. Mr. Maricini successfully ended the relationship in the summer of 2017, but things came back to light in 2018. Mr. Maricini began a relationship with another young lady. He took his date to a restaurant, and Ms. Owens and her mother happened to be there. At the end of the evening, Ms. Owens and her mother stopped at Mr. Maricini's table, introducing themselves to Mr. Maricini to her date, or to his date, and learning her name. On a separate night, Mr. Maricini went out to dinner with his sister. While leaving the restaurant, Mr. Maricini asked Ms. Owens to leave him alone. Ms. Owens then told Mr. Maricini's sister that he had raped and tried to kill her. This caused a shouting match between Mr. Maricini's sister and Ms. Owens. Mr. Maricini made a report to the San Francisco Police Department that night out of fear for his safety. After this, Mr. Maricini was served with a domestic violence protective order. In 2021, Ms. Owens released a TEDx talk titled, The Lifesaving Power of Kindness to Strangers. During this presentation, Ms. Owens alleged having been beaten and abused by her abuser during a trip to Iceland. During the TEDx talk, Ms. Owens published a photograph of herself in a hospital bed, appearing to be injured. Okay. [00:09:48] Speaker ?: Okay. [00:10:03] Speaker 2: Oddly, the same image was sent to Mr. Maricini on August 1, 2016, four and a half years earlier. The text image was her in a hospital bed, and it was captured, looking bomb AF on narcotics. So they pumped me full up with fluids, and get my pain under control with pain meds, and give me anti-nausea medicine that they send me home. I could probably feel okay waiting until Wednesday, but you'll be able to be here tonight and tomorrow night, correct? I want to keep it to Wednesday if I can, since you want to go. Here's a comparison of the pictures, one side from the other. It's the same picture, four and a half years apart. This video remained on YouTube until Ms. Owens accepted the plea in this case. Ms. Owens continued to victimize Mr. Maricini by renewing her domestic violence restraining order in California until October 2025, when she failed to appear in court. Ms. Owens sent a message to the court indicating that she was suffering from acute life-threatening injuries, invoking the American with Disabilities Act, and the continuance was granted. The following day, Ms. Owens was documented participating in a horse-jumping competition. This order was ultimately dismissed after Ms. Owens failed to appear for the rescheduled hearing. The final known false pregnancy scheme concerning Mr. Eckerd was concocted not only to strong-arm Mr. Eckerd into an unhonored relationship through fraud, deceit, and extortion, but also to gain notoriety. Ms. Owens has resorted to threats involving civil suits, extortion by alleging criminal charges, financial extortion, media shaming, and even initiating an investigation through the Department of Real Estate on Mr. Eckerd. Ms. Owens has clearly engaged in aggravated stalking in both of the Arizona cases, as well as a known victim in California. Ms. Owens uses the court system as a weapon, filing frivolous and malicious lawsuits. In fact, on September 21st, 2023, she told Ms. Eckerd that she has unlimited budget to sue him. There are no boundaries to Ms. Owens' vindictiveness, and there are no limits to the death that she will go. This is her. This is a life of privilege that she has lived, the sheer indulgence that her parents have bestowed on her. Ms. Owens has not been told no. She has not been held responsible for anything she has done, nor has she taken responsibilities. Ms. Owens does not feel remorse and is likely not able to feel remorse. She truly believes that she is the victim in all this. The fact that she accepted a plea is not part of her taking responsibility. It's the act of manipulation to attempt to avoid a period of incarceration. Ms. Owens is a terrorist in her own right. A probationary slap on the risk gives no justice to the victim and signals to Ms. Owens that her game was successful and that she's invincible. Thank you. Thank you.