Trending

Woman pleads guilty to shooting husband who was accused of molesting kids at her day care

WASHINGTON — A woman pleaded guilty on Monday to aggravated assault and gun charges after she shot her husband following a confrontation with him about whether he had sexually abused young children.

>> Read more trending news

Shanteari Weems was with her attorneys in D.C. Superior Court on Monday to enter two guilty pleas to charges associated with the shooting, The Washington Post reported. Under the terms of the plea agreement with prosecutors, Weems faces up to two years in prison.

Weems shot her husband, James S. Weems Jr., in the neck and the leg after confronting him at a Washington, D.C. hotel over allegations that he had sexually abused children at her day care, WBAL reported.

Shanteari Weems is a former corrections officer and the registered owner of Lil Kidz Kastle Daycare Center, WJZ-TV reported. According to court records obtained by the station, two guns, an informal will and a notebook detailing her plans to shoot her husband were recovered as evidence during the investigation.

In the notebook detailing Shanteari Weems’ plans, she is alleged to have written that she did not plan on killing her husband, but rather wanted to “paralyze” him, The Washington Post reported.

James S. Weems Jr. was hospitalized after the shooting but has since been discharged. He is a retired Baltimore police officer and remains in custody while awaiting trial on multiple sexual abuse charges, WJZ-TV reported.

Shanteari Weems’ defense attorney said she acted in self-defense when she shot her husband.

“She was confronted at a very emotional, momentary, shocking moment by the parents of the children that her husband had molested,” Tony Garcia, Shanteari Weems’ attorney, told WBAL. “That she let those children, that those children got hurt on her watch, she has extreme, extreme remorse for that.”

Shanteari Weems’ sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 3.

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story misidentified James S. Weems Jr. We regret the error.