Family in mourning after losing 2 loved ones to domestic violence

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) -According to the CDC, more than half of the women in domestic violence situations are killed at the hands of their male partners.

It’s a tragic statistic for a Southeast Shelby County family reeling over from the deaths of their loved ones, 22-year-old Anthonese Stewart and her stepdad 66-year-old Gary Newsom.

The two were shot inside their home Monday on Newfound Gap Road off East Shelby Drive around 5 a.m. during a domestic dispute with Stewart’s significant other.

“The only thing we can speculate is because we were not there from his actions in previous, just of being a father, stepfather a protector more than likely he was telling him to leave. I’m going to call the police,” said Sonya Witherspoon, Anthonese’s aunt.

The suspect, 28-year-old Jaylan McCollins dated Stewart for three years.

According to the family, she made multiple attempts to end the relationship.

The family’s ring doorbell camera caught moments before the shooting.

“It’s been like a year that she has been trying to break away but every time she breaks away, he says I’m going to commit suicide, I’m going to kill myself,” said Witherspoon.

Action News 5 went through McCollin’s criminal history and found a handful of domestic violence charges filed from previous ex-girlfriends between 2018 to 2020. All of the charges were dropped.

It’s a troubling red flag the family said they wish they had known before.

“I didn’t know he had a background, if I knew he had a violent background I would’ve probably talked more to my niece about leaving him,” said Witherspoon.

This shooting sheds light on how many domestic violence incidents Sheriff County Sheriff deputies respond to each year.

At this time in 2023, there were 580 domestic violence calls with physical violence or actual violence involved.

So far in 2024, there have been 529.

While the family works to heal, they are sharing this message with the accused killer.

“Jaylin, this is being thrown out too much. You need to turn yourself in so we can get some peace. So we can get some justice so you can take some accountability,” said Witherspoon.

If you have any information on 28-year-old Jaylan McCollin’s whereabouts, please contact the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.

The family’s GoFundMe for funeral expenses is attached here.

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