My husband shot me five times after I asked for divorce, weeks later, fate placed his life in my hands

When Cassandra asked her husband for a divorce, she never imagined the conversation would end with her fighting for her life and later being forced to make the decision that determined his fate.

Cassandra said her husband pulled out a gun and shot her five times during the attack, while her children were nearby trying to escape the terrifying moment.

She recalled that she and her son were in the kitchen when the situation suddenly changed.

“My son was cooking. Before he pulled out the gun, it was in his back waist, so we didn’t see the gun,” she said.

According to Cassandra, the violence began after a neighbour rushed into the house after noticing something was wrong.

“He’s never done this, but he bust in my front door,” she recalled.

She said her neighbour confronted her husband and tried to stop what was happening.

“He looked at my husband and said, ‘I can’t let you do this.’”

Cassandra said her husband then ordered the neighbour to leave, but the neighbour refused, telling him he could not walk away and leave them inside.

She said her husband eventually pulled out the gun and pointed it at her son. At that moment, Cassandra said she reacted immediately.

“I pushed my son hard out the way, so he fell on the floor,” she recalled.

She said her husband pulled the trigger and the bullet struck her arm. As her neighbour tried to get her oldest son out of the house, Cassandra said her other children were caught in the middle of the chaos.

She recalled seeing her middle son trying to help her after she was shot again.

“He comes and tries to put his arms under me so he can pull me to him,” she said.

Cassandra said she told her son to leave her and run for safety.

“I hit my son’s leg and told him to leave me right here and just get out the house.”

She said her husband then fired again, but missed her son, who escaped by jumping out of a window. With her youngest son still nearby, Cassandra said she begged him to run.

“The man who I loved is standing over me as I’m laying on the floor with a gun,” she recalled.

She said her husband fired again, hitting her for the fifth time.

Eventually, Cassandra said her youngest son managed to escape, leaving her alone with the gunman. She recalled looking at her husband and saying: “I never thought you would do me like this.”

She said he then pointed the gun at her head and pulled the trigger, but the bullet missed and hit the floor. Then, she heard a voice telling her to get up and run.

“All I thought is if I get to that door, I could have a shot at living,” she said.

Cassandra said she ran out of the house while her husband continued shooting, but none of the bullets hit her.

“I hear my son say, ‘Mama, run. He’s still coming,’” she recalled.

Neighbours rushed to help her as she was taken to the hospital. She was later transferred by Life Flight to a trauma unit, where doctors treated her injuries.

Cassandra said she survived because the bullets missed major organs. But while she was recovering, another unexpected decision awaited her.

Cassandra said her husband had attempted to take his own life after the shooting and was placed on life support. Because she was his next of kin, she was faced with deciding whether to continue life support.

After she was discharged from the hospital, Cassandra said she went to see him before making the decision. She said she held his hand, prayed for him and asked God to help her forgive him.

“I prayed for God to forgive him for what he had just done. I prayed for God to help me to forgive him as well,” she said.

After speaking with doctors and learning there was no brain activity, Cassandra said she signed the paperwork to remove him from life support. She also said she stayed until he was made comfortable.

Despite everything she experienced, Cassandra said she still wanted his family to have the chance to say goodbye.

“I wanted his family to put him away,” she said.

She said she allowed his family to make arrangements for his funeral while she continued healing from the attack.

For Cassandra, the experience became a lesson about survival, faith and forgiveness.

“I learned the lesson about forgiveness,” she said.