Attempted Murder and Forgiveness – Erika’s Story

Posted on by George Bradley

Horrible things may have happened to you. You may have been raped. A trusted family member may have ripped you off big time. A friend may have betrayed you. Your life may have been altered by crime, jail, divorce, death, injury, hypocrisy, or terrible injustice. I’m friends with a lovely woman named Ericka Byrd. This is her story. She was innocent. A hard-working mother. But her own husband ambushed her and crushed her scull into a thousand pieces with a tire iron. Today, years later, she is joyful, productive, and content, having forgiven the man who changed her life in such destructive ways. Today she wears a wedding ring, symbolizing her marriage to the Messiah, Jesus. She remains faithful to Him. Erika’s story is an inspiration to me. I know that you will be encouraged by her story as well.

“This part of my story begins in the Springtime of 1999. Part of my memory has been informed by police and news reports because I have no memory of what happened to me physically on that day.

What I can tell you from my own recollection is this. I had been married for 20 years. During these years, my husband and I (named in the attached news story) had one child together and we had adopted six children. I knew that my then husband had become physically abusive to most of our children. I know that he had become sexually abuse to them as well. In addition to parenting, I was very active in our church, New Song, in Portland, Oregon. I served in ministry to women and as a Bible study leader.  I look back now with some regret. I had chosen to be so busy that I did not see what was really happening in my own home, to my own precious children.

I know that I confronted my then husband, John, with the abuse that I had become aware of. I told him that I was planning to go to the pastor of our church with the dreadful information and to also go to the police and report his crimes. After informing John of my intention, I went into our back yard where I would often spend time alone. I had a place in our yard to pray, read God’s Word and to spiritually journal my times alone with the Lord. This is the end of my memory of that day.

Next, I was later informed, my oldest son, Joshua, was awakened by his father and told that a stranger had broken into our home. (This was immediately after my husband had attacked me.) This stranger, my son was told, had entered our detached garage to steal what he could steal. But this thief had been seen by me, Joshua’s mother. My son was told by his father to get up, go check on my condition and to then call emergency services at 911. Joshua did this.

Emergency Medical Technicians from the Fire Department arrived at our home and cared for me. I was unconscious. The EMT’s transported me to Emmanuel Hospital in NE Portland. Police detectives were also dispatched to the scene of my attack. They interviewed my husband. As far as my husband was concerned, he tried to convince the detectives that an unknown thief – who was a stranger to our family – had committed the violent attack on me. Evidence at the scene (and later from the surgeons) indicated that I had been struck in the head 47 times. I had been beaten with the tire iron that was inside of our own van. There was no evidence that anyone else had ever touched this tire iron but my husband, John.

I was in a coma for six months.

My children and sister were told that I would surrender to death and not survive the attack. Bless God’s mighty name, He had something else in mind.

I suffered brain damage. I have short and mid-term memory loss due to the severe cranial injuries I experienced on that day.

After I eventually came out of the coma, I did not remember having been married. I didn’t even remember having had any children. Medical personnel needed to provide me with physical reminders of my past life as a wife and as a mother. During my season of rehabilitation, I needed to “meet” and to spend time with each of my seven children to learn about what had been our life together, before the attack. It was difficult to meet privately with my children because each of them – even the twins – had been placed into different foster homes. Yet, over time, I did have good, quiet conversations with each of my children.

The man who deeply wounded me, and my children, went to prison. He is now on parole, as I understand it. Part of the terms of his parole are that he must never have any contact with me or any of the children. It’s been over 25 years now since the attack. I have no idea where he may be. None of my children, to the best of my knowledge, have seen him.

Thank you for reading my story. One thing that I must make clear, in closing, is this: I stand firmly on the power of forgiveness. I read in scripture that our perfect sinless Jesus Christ hung on that cross; brutalized for His love of mankind. Jesus said, “Forgive them Father, they do not know what they have done.” Luke 23:34 – Bible Gateway If the Messiah Himself, requested forgiveness for His attackers, His is the perfect example for me. True forgiveness set me free.”

Erika Byrd