For more than a year, Antonio Bryant Rogers hunted and haunted his former girlfriend, Shynerra Grant.

In May, 2004, he broke into her home and sent her to the hospital with a broken jaw.

Early yesterday, he tracked her down again, but with far more tragic results. Police say Rogers, 18, shot and killed Miss Grant, 17, after following her to a home where she had sought protection.

There, he busted into the residence, found Miss Grant in the kitchen, and shot her. A short while later, he went to his home, 1735 Oakwood Ave., and killed himself.

Miss Grant of 1607 Lawnview Ave. was a recent Start High School graduate headed to Wilberforce University on a scholarship. She was a cheerleader at Start and a member of the marketing club. She was known for her warm personality and her love of family.

"Shynerra was a good child," said Anita Suleiman, a close friend of Cheryl Boyd, Shynerra's mother. "If all of her family and friends were near her, she was happy."

Police say Miss Grant was killed at the home of a friend at 320 Heathshire Dr., about 2 a.m. She had gone there seeking protection from Rogers, who earlier in the night had confronted her in her car, broken her window, and punched her in the jaw.

The tragedy was the city's second murder-suicide in three days, leaving a total of five people dead.

Shelia McCarver, who lives at the Heathshire home, said her grandson, Michael Gregory, 15, and Miss Grant were friends. She said she was in an upstairs bedroom about 2 a.m. when Miss Grant came knocking, pleading for help.

Ms. McCarver said by the time Miss Grant sat down with her grandson and his mother, Tasha McCarver, Rogers burst through the door. He eventually shot Miss Grant in the kitchen.

A bullet hole near the kitchen door, from an errant shot, is one of the reminders of the incident.

"It was crazy," Ms. McCarver said. "This is just devastating because I love kids, and she was calling for help, and no one would open their door. I want to tell the family we tried to help and would have done anything to help her."

Ms. McCarver said her daughter had already called 911 when the shooting occurred and Rogers rambled out the door.

"Everything happened so quickly," Ms. McCarver said. She believes Rogers possibly fired three gunshots inside her home. "I had two children upstairs, and when I first heard the gunshots, my first instinct was to make sure they were protected. We had six people in the house, and he could have shot all six of us."

Relatives and friends gathered at the homes of Rogers and Miss Grant declined to comment on the incident. A sign acknowledging Miss Grant's graduation from Start was still in the front yard of her Lawnview home.

Toledo Police Sgt. Steve Forrester said Rogers and Miss Grant had a rocky relationship. As a juvenile, Rogers entered Miss Grant's home uninvited and assaulted her on May 11, 2004. Miss Grant was hospitalized with a broken jaw from that incident.

Sergeant Forrester said he did not know the disposition of that case, which was classified as a burglary.

"That boy was just possessed and crazy," Ms. Suleiman said. "He was just evil."

Ms. Suleiman was with Ms. Boyd in Columbus, where both were attending a women's Christian program. Miss Grant called her mother about 1:30 a.m. to tell her that Rogers had already hit her once and was looking for her.

Ms. Boyd told her daughter to call 911 and go to the hospital immediately. Ms. Boyd and Ms. Suleiman then packed their bags and got ready to drive to Toledo.

But before they could leave, Ms. Boyd called the Heathshire home again. A frantic teenager was on the phone, screaming, "He killed her. He killed her."

It would be another 20 minutes before Ms. Boyd learned that her daughter was dead, Ms. Suleiman said.

A few hours earlier, Ms. Suleiman said Ms. Boyd was surprised by how touched she was by someone's testimony at the women's program about losing a child.

"That testimony struck Cheryl to the core, and she couldn't understand why," Ms. Suleiman said.

Now, Ms. Boyd is facing that same reality, and finding comfort in her faith.

"She is sure that her baby is in heaven," Ms. Suleiman said. "That is what will help her get up another day."

In addition to her studies, Miss Grant also worked at the McDonald's restaurant at 36 North Reynolds Rd. She belonged to Rhema Christian Fellowship on North Holland-Sylvania Road.

"It's a tragedy," said Ray Russell, the Start principal. "It's not what you expect to see happen. She had so much planned out for her future, and now that's been taken away from her. This is very sad."

Mary Kedzierski, a marketing teacher at Start, said Miss Grant was a motivated student with dreams of going to college and majoring in a subject where she would be able to use her business and people skills.

Mrs. Kedzierski said Miss Grant was also her student aide and praised her for her hard work and determination.

"She had a bubbly personality, and she was always upbeat when she walked into the classroom," Mrs. Kedzierski said. "She had the ability to make people laugh, and she was able to get along with a wide range of people. She had a lot of school spirit."

Tim Carter was a member of Start's basketball team who attended school with Miss Grant from McKinley Elementary, to DeVeaux Junior High, and graduated with her at Start. "Everybody had a lot of love for her," Mr. Carter, 18, said. "She was good-spirited and had a lot of character."

The May, 2004, burglary report at Lawnview listed Rogers as attending the Glass City Academy, 2275 Collingwood Blvd. No one could be reached at the academy yesterday.

On Friday, Archie Cox, 45, of Washington Township, shot and killed his estranged wife, Susan Cox, 43, of Washington Township, and her friend and co-worker, Shantel Hendrix, 27, of Bedford Township, at Barney's Convenience Mart, 5821 North Detroit Ave., in North Toledo.

Cox, an assembler at the Toledo Jeep Assembly Plant, later shot himself.

Shynerra's cousin Autumn Grant, 24, said her family wants to know why more wasn't done to stop Rogers after he assaulted Shynerra last spring.

"Why was he given another opportunity to hurt someone?" she asked, stabbing her finger into a tabletop. "It's not right."

Staff writer Elizabeth Shack contributed to this report.

Contact Clyde Hughes at: chughes@theblade.com or 419-724-6095.

First Published June 20, 2005, 5:17 p.m.