Dr. Jena Salem, a medical resident and physician in DeKalb County, Georgia, survived a nightmare attack in late January 2026. While asleep in her rental home, a repeat offender with dozens of prior charges cut the power, broke in, strangled her in a chokehold, dragged her to the basement, sexually assaulted her, slit her throat with a kitchen knife, and stabbed her in the chest — collapsing a lung. She fought back fiercely until the knife broke inside her, then escaped to a neighbor for help. She’s now bravely sharing her story.
The suspect, Derrick Burnstine, was arrested nearby. He faces charges including home invasion and aggravated assault and is being held without bond. He has a prior criminal record.
This story has received almost no national media coverage because the races of the victim and attacker do not fit the preferred narrative. But imagine if a White man did this to a Black woman.
This is the America women are forced to live in.
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A DeKalb County woman is counting her blessings after nearly losing her life during a brutal home invasion in January.
Dr. Jena Salem said a man broke into her house, dragged her into the basement, sexually assaulted her and stabbed her in the chest. The two struggled with the knife, breaking the blade, according to DeKalb police.
“I plant my feet onto his chest and I shove him off of me. At that point he backs up and I’m able to get out of my house,” said Salem.
The man has been identified as Derrick Burnstine. READ MORE
DeKalb County Police said the suspect, Derrick Burnstine, cut off the electricity to the home before the attack.
“I immediately woke up from a dead sleep to heavy footsteps in my hallway. My first thing I thought was that, ‘Oh, my God, someone’s in my house,'” Salem said.
Salem added that the attacker told her to remove her pants, but she used that moment to attempt to escape through the front door, which was locked.
“He grabs me with his forearm in a chokehold, and he just starts immediately strangling me as hard as he can,” Salem said. “I can’t even make a noise. I’m trying to scream for someone to hear me. I can’t even make a noise.” READ MORE
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It has been widely discussed online that Derrick Burnstine has an extensive prior criminal history, including multiple charges for violent offenses such as armed robbery, weapons violations, and others. Court records and public discussions (e.g., on platforms like Reddit referencing Judy Records) indicate numerous prior cases—potentially over a dozen individual charges (or more when counting every count) across several court proceedings—many of which reportedly resulted in probation, suspended sentences, or plea deals rather than long-term incarceration. The prior record is heavily mentioned and discussed by the public and independent accounts, but not reported by the local news outlets (such as FOX5 Atlanta, Atlanta News First, or the AJC) covering the story.
I tried to do more research on his prior arrests and my blog, but reality and truth still violate ChatGPT’s policies.
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