The person who attacked Sabrina Greenlee was Savannah Carlita Grant, a woman who was dating the same man as Greenlee. On July 20, 2002, in South Carolina, Grant threw a bucket of boiling lye mixed with bleach on Greenlee, blinding her and causing severe burns. Grant pleaded guilty to assault and battery with intent to kill and was sentenced to 20 years in a South Carolina penitentiary.1USA Today. DeAndre Hopkins NFL Draft Many Tragedies
What Happened on July 20, 2002
Greenlee, then a mother of four, had gone to an address to pick up her car from a man she had been dating for several months. She did not know he was also involved with Savannah Grant.2Yahoo. DeAndre Hopkins Mother: What Happened to Sabrina Greenlee When Greenlee arrived, the boyfriend began apologizing. Grant then came out and hurled a bucket of bleach mixed with lye at Greenlee’s face, neck, chest, and back.3ESPN. The Unbreakable Bond
Greenlee’s skin began sloughing off almost immediately, and a “white curtain” dropped over her eyes. The boyfriend drove her to a nearby gas station and then left. A station attendant poured water on her burns until emergency responders arrived and airlifted her to a burn center in Augusta, Georgia.3ESPN. The Unbreakable Bond
Grant’s Guilty Plea and 20-Year Sentence
Savannah Carlita Grant was charged under South Carolina law with assault and battery with intent to kill. She pleaded guilty and received a 20-year sentence in a South Carolina penitentiary. A 2013 USA Today report indicated Grant had been incarcerated since 2003 and remained in prison at that time.1USA Today. DeAndre Hopkins NFL Draft Many Tragedies The file does not report Grant’s current custody status.
The boyfriend at the center of the dispute was not charged in connection with the attack.3ESPN. The Unbreakable Bond
What the Attack Left Behind
Greenlee was placed in a medically induced coma for roughly 30 days while doctors performed skin grafts to treat burns across her face, neck, chest, and back.4ABC13. Domestic Violence Awareness Month: Sabrina Greenlee Gives Back The attack left her permanently blind. In the years that followed, she underwent more than 20 surgeries on each eye, including cornea transplants, but none restored her sight.3ESPN. The Unbreakable Bond
Her son, DeAndre Hopkins, was 10 years old at the time. He later told People magazine he was in shock seeing his mother after she returned home. “I was in shock that somebody could look like that,” he said. “It was really scary, and to think that’s my mom, she’s gonna be like that the rest of her life. I was hoping that it was a dream.”5People. DeAndre Hopkins Gets Candid About Seeing His Mom After Acid Attack
Greenlee has said she battled depression and suicidal thoughts for more than three years after the attack, and credited her four children and her faith with her eventual decision to rebuild her life. “It was a journey for me to get myself together for my children, but I was determined to do it,” she told The Root.6The Root. In Grant Me Vision, Sabrina Greenlee Shares Her Story
Greenlee’s Decision to Forgive Her Attacker
Greenlee has spoken publicly, and at length, about choosing to forgive Savannah Grant. She told CBS News the choice was deliberate and made for her family. “I did it for my children, because I needed to get back to being a mother,” she said.7CBS News. Sabrina Greenlee on Her Journey to Forgiveness
Part of the process, she said, was refusing to let Grant remain an abstraction. “I began to humanize her by calling out her name,” Greenlee told CBS. “I began to make her relatable in my mind and not this monster I had created.” She also said she prayed for Grant.7CBS News. Sabrina Greenlee on Her Journey to Forgiveness Speaking with The Root, she put it this way: “I would not be where I’m at today if I had not chosen to forgive.”6The Root. In Grant Me Vision, Sabrina Greenlee Shares Her Story
Greenlee has since become a domestic violence advocate and the founder of the nonprofit S.M.O.O.O.T.H. Inc., which runs workshops and support groups for survivors and their children.8FBWC. Healing Hope: Sabrina Greenlee Shares Her Story In July 2024, she published her memoir, Grant Me Vision: A Journey of Family, Faith, and Forgiveness, through HarperCollins, with a foreword by DeAndre Hopkins.9HarperCollins. Grant Me Vision by Sabrina Greenlee