Domestic violence survivor hopes sharing her story helps others

By WNYT

Domestic violence survivor hopes sharing her story helps others

She was nearly killed in an act of domestic violence by the father of her child. Six years later, she hopes sharing her story will help others.

Katie Gilbert was shot and nearly killed by the father of one of her kids. Now more than six years later, she’s sharing her story in hopes it will help others.

Gilbert moved to Greenfield Center to get away from her attacker Stephen Lerario. She took her children in the middle of the night and went upstate to escape him and his heroin abuse.

It didn’t take him long for him to find her, but she didn’t let him back in until more than a year later. It looked like he was doing better, she said.

Woman speaks out after surviving horrific 2018 domestic violence attack

She was the victim of a horrific act of violence that nearly ended her life. The father of her child was out to get her. Now she's speaking out about what he took from her and her quest to get her appearance back.

That didn’t last. Soon Lerario was using again. One day in April of 2018, he found some money that Katie had been saving for an emergency.

“We got into a huge fight. He ended up punching me in the face, knocking me out, and while I was knocked out, he shot me in the side of my head with a shotgun,” she said.

Lerario denied trying to kill Gilbert. A jury didn’t buy it. Lerario was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Every time Gilbert looks in the mirror, she’s reminded of what he did to her. However, she’s not letting it define her.

Learn about how she focuses on her pride in surviving this by watching the video of Mark Mulholland’s story.

Katie Gilbert shares her story of domestic violence survival

She survived a vicious attack at the hands of her boyfriend. Now, still dealing with the pain and damage that he caused, a Saratoga County woman is sharing her horrifying story.