LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — It’s been nearly a month since an alleged domestic violence-fueled crash landed Faith Newsome in the hospital.
According to police, Newsome was riding on the back of a motorcycle in an attempt to get away from Brenden Cummins, her on-again, off-again boyfriend, when his vehicle crashed into her, throwing her off the bike and pinning her under his car.
Faith's brother, Dustin, told LEX 18 that he and some friends raced to the scene of the crash and were able to flip the vehicle and lift it off of Faith, but her leg was nearly severed.
Dustin used his belt as a tourniquet to keep his sister from bleeding out. When Faith woke up in the hospital, her leg had been amputated.
“I never thought that someone who supposedly loved me would do something like this. I never thought that he would do this to me,” said Newsome, from her hospital bed at UK Hospital.
The last thing Newsome remembers from the crash was turning around to see Cummins chasing her.
Waking up in the hospital, she was stunned.
“I was in extreme, extreme, extreme amounts of pain. That’s the main thing I remember,” said Newsome. “I couldn't move an inch of my body. I just remember being in pain and it took a long time for me to realize, once I sat up and realized that my leg was gone, and that's when I lost it. I started crying and I couldn't stop crying. It was extremely hard.”
Road rash covered 97% of Newsome’s body, her pelvis had been crushed, her diaphragm ruptured, along with countless other injuries.
“I have about two to three surgeries a week,” said Newsome. “I'm going back under tomorrow. I'm getting used to it at this point.”
Newsome wishes she could go back.
“You’ve gotta be strong and walk away, and I wish I could tell myself that a year ago when I first met him because I wouldn't be in this situation.”
In January, police arrested Cummins on strangulation charges. According to Newsome, leaving a domestic violence situation isn’t always easy.
“I just want to tell every girl, if you ever get the sense, the first hint or clue that he’s aggressive in any shape or form, you need to leave while you can because there is no changing a man,” said Newsome.
With eight more weeks in the hospital followed by months of relearning to walk, Newsome pushes forward for her kids, two at home and one, Bentley, who passed away in 2022.
Newsome wants to make him proud by standing up for herself and other victims of domestic violence.
“Most importantly, I can't let Bentley down,” said Newsome. “Ever since he passed away, I told myself that I would be the person I should've been. I would be the person that’d make him proud.”
You can donate to Newsome’s recovery through a GoFundMe, found here.
