Retired cop shot by wife over child sex abuse allegations at her daycare center: police
A retired Baltimore police officer has been charged with more than a dozen child sex abuse counts — after being shot by his wife for allegedly molesting kids at her daycare center, police said.
James Weems Jr., 57, was arrested on Monday in the hospital, where he was been treated for serious injuries sustained during a July 21 shooting.
The Washington DC Metro Police said that the ex-cop’s wife, Shanteari Weems, 50, shot her husband of five years last week at the Mandarin Oriental hotel on Maryland Avenue in the capital.
Detectives responded to the luxury hotel — where a night’s stay starts at $400 — at around 7:40 p.m. for a report of a shooting, and found James suffering from apparent gunshot wounds.
The husband was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries.
His wife was arrested after a brief standoff with the police and charged with assault with intent to kill, a felony. She is due in court on Friday.
“The detectives’ investigation revealed that this offense was domestic in nature,” police said.
James Weems faces 13 charges for allegedly sexually abusing at least three children at Kids. Kastle Child Development Center, which is owned by his wife.WBFF
On Tuesday, the Baltimore County Police Department announced that an arrest warrant has been issued for James after allegations came to light that the ex-cop allegedly sexually abused at least three children while working at a daycare center in the Baltimore suburb of Owings Mills, Maryland.
Records indicate that Shanteari operated Lil Kidz Kastle Daycare Center in Owings Mills.
According to a statement from the agency, Baltimore County detectives launched an investigation into the husband earlier this month after they learned of the alleged abuse.
James now faces 13 criminal charges, including two counts of third-degree sex offense, three counts of second-degree assault, and one count of displaying obscene material to a minor.
According to a police affidavit cited by the news station WJLA, at the time of her arrest, Shanteari told detectives of her husband: “f–k him, he’s a child molester.”
During a subsequent interview with the police, Shanteari allegedly said that she had received multiple messages and calls from parents and teachers at her day care reporting sexual molestation of children.
The woman said she arrived at the 5-star hotel in DC to confront her husband and repeatedly asked him about the abuse claims. The pair then got into a “full-blown” argument, which turned heated, she told authorities.
The woman allegedly said that at one point, James moved towards her, which is when she pulled out her gun and shot him.
Court documents stated that cops recovered a notebook in the hotel room containing handwritten messages, including “I’m going to shoot (James) but not kill him” and “I want these kids to get justice, and you gonna pay.”
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