Chicago-area woman shot 7 times, grateful her attacker was arrested

CHICAGO (CBS) – The woman who was shot to death, along with two of her children, in her Matteson home earlier this month has detailed the horrors they experienced.

Police arrested Antoinette Newsome’s ex-boyfriend, Lander D. Coleman, who her family says entered her home and hid for hours before shooting her and two of her children.

“It had to be the most terrifying thing I’ve ever experienced in my life,” Newsome said.

She is recovering from seven gunshot wounds she suffered on May 18.

“I woke up with a gun pointed in my face,” she said.

Newsome said she wants others to see what domestic violence has done to her and her family. Matteson police said Coleman, the father of three of her children, shot her while she slept.

“Both my babies were in the bed,” she said. “My baby came out and she said, ‘Mommy, please don’t die.'”

Newsome physically survived, but she will live with the experience forever.

Newsome said doctors were unable to remove three bullets from his chest. She also has three pins in her hand. She will no longer be able to use her arm properly. She was also shot in the chin and head.

Newsome’s 12-year-old son, Junior, heard the gunshots coming from the next room and tried to help his mother. He was also shot in the arm and once in the leg. Her 23-year-old daughter was sleeping downstairs when she was shot.

“Shooting children? What type of monster are you? she says.

The suspect was later seen on surveillance video fleeing his home with a gun in his hand.

On Friday morning, nearly two weeks after Newsome and her children were shot, Coleman was found in Roseland with a gun. He was involved in an impasse of almost 10 hours with the FBI, SWAT and police. Law enforcement said he committed suicide and had a head injury.

“It’s finally over,” Newsome said.

She also thanked the FBI, Chicago and Matteson police for helping find Coleman.

“They worked hard,” she said of the police. “They worked so hard in the little time they had and they made up for it.”

Police found Coleman two days later The CBS 2 story detailing what happened during the May 18 attack inside Newsome’s house.

Days before the attack, Newsome had obtained an order of protection after what she said was years of domestic violence. She said she tried to add their children to the protection order, but a judge denied the request and Coleman was allowed to request “parenting time.”

As for what she would say to other survivors of domestic violence, Newsome told them: “Never give up. The system is hard to navigate. Never give up. Keep pushing. Stay safe. That’s all that you can really do.”

Newsome was one of 28,000 people in Cook County who filed for a protection order in the last year alone.

If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, you can call the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline at 877-863-6338 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233.

The Network, an advocacy group for victims of domestic violence, has also developed a toolkit on how to create a safety plan.

The Clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court Office offers advice on how to obtain protective orders and has a help center.