Widow left to raise 6-year-old daughter alone after husband killed by stray bullet

CHARLOTTE — A stray bullet from a shootout on March 5 in Steele Creek killed Vanessa Freiberg’s husband, Jimmy Freiberg.

Channel 9 veteran crime reporter Glenn Counts spoke with the widow about the tough journey ahead.

“Just like that, I became a single, widowed parent, essentially, homeless at that moment,” Freiberg said.

PAST COVERAGE:

• Man charged with murder after Charlotte DJ killed by stray bullet in March shootout, CMPD says
• Warrant reveals new details about shootout that killed beloved Charlotte DJ
• ‘Made you feel special’: Man killed by stray bullet during shootout was husband, father

She said that it has been a painful and difficult six months for her and her 6-year-old daughter, Charly.

“We never really talked about if, what if one of us wasn’t here,” she said. “It was so far from our minds.”

Freiberg was right by her husband’s side when he was shot.

She tried everything she could do to save his life.

“The more calling 911, the more I tried to give him CPR,” she said. “The more it just bled out, trying to cover it. By then he was already gone.”

Freiberg started to believe the case would turn cold.

However, on Tuesday, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police arrested and charged Michael Cornwell, 27, with first-degree murder.

“When that call came, I just remember, instantly, wanting to throw up,” she said. “Just from all the emotions finally coming to a head.”

Freiberg said the toughest part is trying to raise her daughter and answering the many questions she has.

“At night when they are crying because you’re not daddy, you’re not that other parent is the hardest, and I can’t replace that,” Freiberg said.

Corwell has a lengthy criminal record with numerous gun charges.

Freiberg said she wants to look Cornwell in the eye in court. She would like to see him spend the rest of his life in prison.

VIDEO: Man dies after being struck by stray bullet during shootout at Steele Creek apartment complex

CMPD: Man dies after being struck by stray bullet during shootout at Steele Creek apartment complex

©2022 Cox Media Group