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‘I would’ve been dead’: Former pro boxer brings awareness to DV after husband tried to kill her

CHARLOTTE — Christy Martin has been on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a world class boxer, but it was outside of the ring that she found herself fighting for her life.

Her husband, James Martin, 66, tried to kill her on Nov. 23, 2010, at their home in Florida.

“Even though I’d seen the knife, I didn’t realize he was stabbing me,” Christy Martin told reporter DaShawn Brown. “But the fourth stab, fifth stab, went through my breast, and blood went everywhere.”

After that, Martin’s husband then pulled out her gun.

“He stands at my feet, points the gun at me and I told him, ‘You don’t have the balls to shoot me,’” she said. “He shot me. I prayed to God to please let me get out. A few minutes, the shower water turned on. Jim thought I was dead. He went to get in the shower, but when the water turned on, it woke me up. It was God’s answer to my prayer.”

[24-hour domestic violence hotline: 980-771-HOPE]

Christy Martin found the strength to escape.

“I got up,” she said. “I took my car keys. I went to the car. I realized I had the wrong keys, so now I’m, like, ‘I can’t go back into the house.’ I went to the middle of the road, and as I like to say, I carjacked somebody. Rick Cole was my angel. He picked me up, took me to the hospital.”

The boxer survived.

[How to get help for domestic violence victims]

“In two more minutes, he would’ve been out of the shower, and I would’ve been dead,” Christy Martin said. “But no. I got out, and I’m here to help other people.”

Now she wants to help others in abusive relationships.

“I didn’t realize I was being abused, so if I can’t realize it, and I had been in that situation for so long,” she said. “Other people don’t realize it either, and even your mother, your father, your sister, your brother, they can’t help you if you don’t reach out to them.”

Christy Martin, who has lived in Charlotte for several years, has shifted to promoting fights and uses the platform to advocate against domestic violence and provide resources.

She’s been in and out of town prepping for a big match on Nov. 7 at the Rock Hill Sports and Event Center.