Survivor's testimony key to helping convict violent ex-boyfriend charged with murder

C.C. Opanowski was just 18 years old when she was brutally attacked by someone she once loved -- her ex-boyfriend Shawn Doyle. C.C. tried to put the traumatic incident behind her until she learned years later that Doyle murdered a mother of two young boys. For the first time, C.C. is speaking out publicly to" 48 Hours" and correspondent Anne-Marie Green about her story and how she was able to find the strength to testify against her attacker in court. SARAH VOLMAR/ CBS6 ALBANY NEWS REPORT: He had tied me up with shoelaces and, um, put the duct tape back over my mouth and then just began strangling me until I passed out. And then my mother walked in on it. CBS6 ALBANY NEWS REPORT: When the guilty verdict was read, Lori Leonard's family burst into cheers and sobs, but Shawn Doyle showed little reaction. LORI LEONARD'S FAMILY MEMBER (in court) | CBS6 ALBANY: Prison isn't even the right place for someone like him. It's not punishment enough.

It was Jan. 27, 1996 and C.C. Opanowski has just finished her first semester of college in upstate New York. She and her ex-boyfriend, Shawn Doyle had been broken up for about four months.

C.C. Opanowski: My mother was going away for the weekend. … so I had this whole big house to myself. …And my friend Shannon and I … we were very close …  I said, "well, let's stay at my house 'cause there's no one around."