UPDATE: Monmouth Junction Corrections Officer Killed in Shooting

Katrina Owens, a 37-year-old corrections officer, was shot and killed outside of a barbecue early Tuesday morning on Columbia Avenue in Newark's West Ward.

Owens was one of three people killed in a 45-minute span early Tuesday. .

Owens, who is a married mother of three, was off duty and attending a barbecue with a male friend when a dispute broke out and she was shot around 12:30 a.m., according to a statement from the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

Law enforcement sources who were not authorized to speak about the investigation said the shooter is Owens' 21-year-old boyfriend. After he shot her, he apparently fled to Richmond, Va., where he killed himself at a Greyhound bus station.

Acting Newark Police Director Samuel DeMaio would not confirm the relationship between Owens and the shooter or whether the 21-year-old killed her. It also is not known if the shooter was the man with her at the barbecue. DeMaio said, though, detectives were on their way to Virginia. He referred to the killing Tuesday afternoon as a "domestic dispute."

Kenneth Lancaster, 48, said Owens' body was found outside his red brick house, "I was just sitting in the house and saw police lights. I came out and saw a girl on the sidewalk. She was lying on her side facing the street." Lancaster said he didn't hear screams or gun shots. He said, though, he heard a man say, "She was shot in the head."

Armando, who refused to give his last name, but lives four houses down from where Owens was killed, said he saw her body, "In the distance, I saw a white t-shirt with blood, but couldn't tell if it was a man or woman."

Armando said he heard numerous "bangs" Monday night into Tuesday morning between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., but could not differentiate between gun shots or firecrackers.

The scene Tuesday morning was quiet with yellow police tape tied to metal fencing that once blocked off Columbia Avenue. Outside the red brick house, dirt was mixed with blood on the sidewalk, where Owens was shot. A few silver-colored balloons were stuck in wires above the sidewalk and the smell of used firecrackers was still in the air.

Armando said Columbia Avenue is known for shootings and drugs. Another man, who gave his name as Fred, also said the street is known for "guns and drugs."

Owens was employed at the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton and had been a corrections officer since 2003. New Jersey Department of Corrections spokeswoman Deirdre Fedkenheuer said Owens first began working as a probation officer in April 1998 and became a senior corrections officer for the Juvenile Justice Commission in January 2003. She took a break from work in February 2006 and was rehired in July 2007, then became a permanent senior corrections officer in September 2007. Owens' husband is Marquis Owens, a sergeant at the Northern State Prison, according to department of corrections officials.

In July of last year, Owens began working at the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton. Her salary was $64,000 a year.

She lived in the Monmouth Junction section of South Brunswick.

Her death is under investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force.

DeMaio said despite the three killings, the city's homicide rate is declining. He said, compared to last year, murders are down 24 percent and shootings down 10 percent since the launch of the city's "Safe Summer" crime program June 1. DeMaio said there were five murders in June and four so far in July.

This is a breaking news story. Continue to check Patch for updates.

— Sharon Adarlo contributed to this report.