NORFOLK, Va. — A Fort Eustis soldier is in jail after being accused of shooting his wife.
James City County Police say Rae'kwan Fulton, 25, shot his spouse and then drove away. He was later arrested in Newport News and is being held in the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail without bond.
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October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, an "opportunity to bring light to the issue of domestic violence and its effects on victims, survivors, families and communities," according to the Virginia Department of Social Services.
News 3 spoke with a survivor of domestic violence Monday, who said she experienced threats from her ex-boyfriend with a gun pointed at her.
Kelly, whose last name will not given for her and her children's safety, is a single mom of four.
"My ex-boyfriend put a gun in front of my head and he told my children to tell me goodbye," said Kelly, who described how she went through emotional, mental and physical abuse at the hands of her ex.
Watch previous story: Samaritan House hosts luncheon in VB to spread awareness of domestic violence
She said the abuse increased over time but it started with words.
"The verbal abuse started when we first met straight away," she said. "I was verbally abused and not allowed to have friends, [he] tried to keep me away from my family, move me as far away as he could."
Kelly says police came to the door the last time she was threatened with a gun in August 2022. Police arrested her ex and Kelly asked for a restraining order.
Immediately after, Kelly moved out of state and settled in Hampton Roads with her children. She says times are tough, but adds that she'd rather be behind on bills than back with her abuser.
"I'd rather be on the streets than around him," said Kelly. "I'll sleep in the park first."
According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), one in 15 children are exposed to intimate partner violence each year, and 90 percent witness it first-hand.
Kelly said her kids were part of that statistic, especially when weapons were involved.
"They've seen it all," said Kelly. "They were old enough to understand what was going on. I guess they didn't know why I stayed. I don't even know why I stayed."
NCADV statistics also show that the presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation increases the risk of homicide by 500 percent.
Neisha Himes says she is a survivor of domestic violence and the founder of a non-profit called the G.R.O.W Foundation. She says using a gun to threaten something isn't just cruel, it's calculated.
"Abuse is about power and control," says Himes. "An abuser will do whatever to assert that power and control you. If something doesn't work, they'll assert fear in other ways."
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Kelly says she's grateful to be alive and she encourages other women not to turn a blind eye to abuse.
"Abusers will lie over and over again," said Kelly. "They'll tell you they love you, and they want you to stay, and they say it won't happen again, and unfortunately, it will and next time it will be ten times worse."
