SPRING, Texas — A woman accused of killing a young mother and abducting her 3-day-old boy had suffered a miscarriage and intended to “adopt” the newborn as her own, authorities said Wednesday.
Verna McClain, 30, is charged with capital murder after confessing to killing the new mother and grabbing tiny Keegan Golden from outside a pediatrician’s office in suburban Houston. Keegan was found unharmed hours later with McClain’s sister.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday that McClain — a vocational nurse who already had children and was estranged from her husband — had told her fiancé she was pregnant and had given birth to his child. Instead, McClain had miscarried, Capt. Bruce Zenor said.
McClain’s sister, Corina Jackson, told authorities that McClain had talked about needing to “do the adoption” soon after taking Keegan.
Her fiancé, who was not identified Wednesday, is being interviewed by authorities.
Officials said they did not believe anyone else was involved in the shooting and abduction.
Sheriff Tommy Gage said Kala Golden had placed Keegan into her pickup Tuesday afternoon after leaving Northwoods Pediatric Center in Spring, about 20 miles north of Houston. The alleged shooter was parked next to her, Gage said.
During the confrontation, the woman repeatedly shot Golden, then snatched the child from her truck and drove away, according to witness accounts. The dying woman leaned into the vehicle and tried to take the boy back, screaming, “My baby!” but her attacker sped off.
Two detectives spotted a vehicle later Tuesday outside a nearby apartment complex that matched witnesses’ descriptions, Gage said. Though McClain’s apartment was empty, she later arrived and talked to authorities.
“During her interview with detectives, information was obtained which led detectives to a residence in Harris County, where her sister lives, and a possible location of the child,” Gage said. McClain was later arrested. Police say she admitted carrying out the attack.
Investigators said McClain’s statements included information only the shooter would know and indicated she attacked the mother Tuesday as part of a wider plan to kidnap any child. Golden was simply a convenient target.
McClain was being held without bail, and the baby has been returned to family members.
Keith Schuchardt, who was married to Golden for three years, told the Houston Chronicle that he learned of the shooting because as Golden lay dying, she asked another woman to call him and explain the attack.
