WAVY.com

Newport News woman’s American dream turns into a nightmare of bullet holes

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — Clarissa Eley is proud of her first home.

The shipyard worker’s three-bedroom, two-bathroom ranch was built in 2000. but there’s just one problem.


Her American dream of homeownership has turned into a nightmare that won’t go away. The most recent nightmare started at 2:15 a.m. Sunday.

Tuesday afternoon she took 10 On Your Side on a tour of damage.

“I woke up to some gunshot noise and it was like four of them — it started up apparently … back here in this room,” Eley said. “This is the first bullet hole. That’s where it came from. See, it knocked the corner of this off and it started there. This door was closed, so it hit this door right here.

“Then it came through my bedroom — I heard something say ting. That’s when it hit the mirror. And then it went over to this side. And this is where [the bullet] ended up[in a closet].”

The tour included gunfire damage from 2022 — that’s when a bullet hit the backsplash in her kitchen, and another incident in 2008 that included damage to her home and car.

Eley said police told her casings from Sunday’s shooting were found outside a nearby convenience store. Just across from the store, the siding on her home is peppered with what appears to be bullet holes.

“I don’t feel safe,” Eley said. “Just kind of still nervous and think it’s something going to happen. So I’m thinking they’re going to shoot again.”

If you have any information about the case, police ask that you call Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.