Shanteari Weems admitted to authorities that she shot her husband, James Weems, after children at her Lil Kidz Kastle Daycare Center came forward with claims that her husband was molesting them. The shooting took place on Thursday (July 21) at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington, D.C. Shanteari was charged with assault with the intent to kill.

7:40 p.m. Upon arrival, Shanteari was barricaded inside a room with her disgraced husband. Authorities attempted to get the 50-year-old to exit the room for about an hour but she refused to leave and insisted on killing herself. She shouted to authorities that her 57-year-old husband was a “child molester” when asked if anyone else was in the room with her. James informed the police that he sustained a wound to the leg and the head. Shanteari surrendered shortly after and James was transported to the hospital with injuries that are not considered life-threatening. He’s now considered a fugitive from justice in Maryland and is under guard at the medical center.

On Tuesday (July 26), Baltimore County police said they obtained an arrest warrant for James Weems, charging him with 13 sex crimes related to the abuse of “at least three children” at his wife’s daycare center. Meanwhile, Shanteari is being held in a D.C. jail and was charged with assault with intent to kill her husband and a few handgun offenses. One of her lawyers, Tony N. Garcia, said in an interview that Shanteari shot her husband in self-defense after their argument turned violent and he “started coming toward her.”

James, who served as a police officer from 1996 to 2005, assisted his wife at the daycare center and also did private security work. He’s being hit with multiple charges of sexual abuse of a minor and second, third, and fourth-degree sex offenses. It is unclear when the alleged abuse occurred. Shanteari’s attorney, Garcia, continued saying his client “built her business from scratch” and allegations of sexual abuse of minors against her husband “were pretty earth-shattering.”

According to the affidavit, Shanteari Weems told D.C. police that on Thursday, “the conversation escalated into a full-blown argument” and “at some point in the argument, her husband stood up and started towards her,” so she shot him with her handgun that she’s licensed to carry. An investigation is still underway.