A judge in Maryland denied bail to Shanteari Weems, the woman who shot her husband after learning that he had allegedly abused children in the care center she managed.
The report this Friday from ABC 7 indicates that Weems, aged 50 and a resident of Randallstown, appeared at a court hearing this Friday to respond to the accusations in her against assault with attempted murder.
Tony García, the defendant’s attorney, argued that his client acted in self-defense after confronting her husband, James Weems, about the allegations of abuse after the mother of a minor claimed her.
“She was confronted by a mother who was distraught, who was upset, who she had known for many years, that her son was abused and that Jay did it. She was emotionally devastated,” Garcia said.
It should be noted that the Baltimore County police charged the man days later with several counts of sexual abuse against three children. James remains detained in a Washington DC prison
However, the claim of self-defense was called into question after investigators allegedly confiscated a notebook in which Shanteari would have stated her intention to shoot him to the man. “I’m on my way to shoot James. My intention is not to kill him. My intention is to paralyze him”, the woman would have written on the paper.
Based on the above, the judge aligned with the prosecution and decided to deny her bail on the grounds of premeditation.
Citizens and organizations that press for the caregiver’s release allege, among other things, that the decision was racist and sexist.
“If Mrs. Weems were a white man, she would be at home right now,” posed Afeni Evans of Freedom Fighters DC “The DC jail and the DC court system always values whiteness over anything else”, added the spokeswoman.
Weems will remain in detention until the next hearing in August. As for her husband, it is unclear whether he will be granted bail.
The attack to which the Metropolitan Police Department responded was reported on 21 July at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Southwest DC
The shooting on the block 1300 of Maryland Avenue Southwest, DC resulted in the man being injured on at least one occasion, while the woman was barricaded inside the hotel.
Shanteari told detectives that drove from Maryland to DC on 20 July to meet her husband.
Upon arrival at the location, she repeatedly confronted him about allegations of child abuse. As the hours progressed, the woman received multiple messages and calls from parents about the alleged pattern of abuse.
At one point in the discussion between the two, the man got up and tried to approach her. It was at that moment that he allegedly took the gun out of her bag and shot her. The woman alleged that her interest was not to kill him because if she had wanted to do that, the scene would have been reported just as the police were trying to enter the room.
1300