Day Care Owner Who Shot Her Husband For Sexually Assaulting Students Speaks: “I Will Apologize When He Apologizes To Those Children”

The daycare owner who shot her husband after learning he sexually assaulted her students is speaking out about her feelings regarding the shooting.

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Shanteari Weems discusses her feelings about the shooting and how she felt when her husband, James Weems, committed horrific acts against her students in an exclusive interview with WUSA9. Shanteari, as previously reported, shot James twice in July 2022 at the Mandarin Oriental in Washington D.C. after learning he was accused of molesting several children at her daycare in Baltimore, Maryland. She said she found out about the allegations after a parent of one of her students suggested they talk about James.

“I felt like the blood had just drained out of my body because … it was my husband. He was supposed to help me protect these children. He always told me he was my protector. So when I heard this, I just felt like – I just felt like my world had ended,” she explained after learning one of her students was molested by her husband.

Weems was sentenced to serve four years in prison after being charged with aggravated assault and carrying a pistol without a license. While behind bars, Wheems said she’s getting help and support from other female inmates and supporters from the internet. “Despite my surroundings, I’m doing OK. I have a lot of supporters and people who uplift me and help me survive,” she explained.

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Weems noted she was emotional when she received her sentence, thought about the children affected by his actions, and admitted the argument was getting out of control during their confrontation. “I snapped; I’m not a violent person. The situation was kind of like a fire,” Shanteari Weems said. “He was fuel. I was fuel … We poured fuel on that fire. We just got to arguing, fussing, and one thing led to another,” she continued.

During her sentencing, Judge Michael O’Keefe told Wheems that she didn’t have the right to take the law into her hands and “deliberately” set out to cause harm to her husband.  However, her lawyer said his client was confronted with a situation where a child she knew was harmed. Weems said she considered ending her own life after shooting her husband.

She feels remorse for the shooting but does not apologize to her husband until he takes accountability for his actions.

“I feel I let my family down. I feel like I let those kids’ families down. I feel like I just trusted the wrong person. I will apologize when he apologizes to those children,”

She filed for divorce in February, and James Wheems has been charged with molesting four children between the ages of 9 and 11. Shantaeri plans to launch a non-profit organization to help victims of child abuse.