HOUSTON, Texas — (DMN) – A 30-year old Texas woman has been charged with capital murder for killing the mother of a 3-day-old baby she is also accused of kidnapping. Verna McClain (pictured above) is accused of fatally shooting 28-year old Kala Golden who was leaving a pediatric clinic in the Woodlands area north of Houston with her baby yesterday afternoon. Court documents filed in Montgomery County say that McClain was licensed as a vocational nurse in Texas on Oct. 21, 2010 and has no disciplinary actions against her, authorities say she was not employed at the pediatric clinic where the shooting occurred and the baby was abducted.
“Ms. McClain is currently charged with capital murder. Here in Texas, capital murder requires a felony to have been committed in the course of committing the murder,” said Brett Ligon with the Montgomery County DA’s Office. “It’s obviously something we take very seriously and as part of it, we are requesting Ms. McClain be held with no bond.” Events unfolded in the parking lot of a clinic off Borough Park and Sawdust in The Woodlands late yesterday afternoon. Investigators say Kala Golden, 28, was leaving a check-up with her three-day-old son, Keegan Schuchardt, when she got into an argument with McClain in a parked Lexus.
The woman snatched the baby from Goldern’s arms and went to drive away in a blue or light green Lexus, according to witness accounts. The dying woman leaned into the vehicle and tried to take Keegan back, screaming “My baby!” but her attacker sped away after striking the mother and leaving her lying in the parking lot. A second person in the vehicle has not been identified. Golden was transported to Memorial Hermann Hospital where she was later pronounced dead.
Authorities developed new leads that led them to an apartment in Harris County, where they found the infant. Court documents detail how McClain’s sister told authorities that McClain had been wanting to adopt a child and now had that child. “There were statements as indicated in the arrest record which were made by Ms. McClain that led us to believe that this was an intentional act on her part, not that Ms. Golden was targeted specifically, but that this was part of a plan to kidnap a child,” Ligon said. Court documents also say that McClain admitted to shooting Golden and taking the newborn.
Relatives of the slain woman declined to comment Tuesday when approached by a reporter outside their Spring home. Golden’s husband, Keith, recently announced the birth of his son on his Facebook page. “Baby Keegan is here,” he posted Sunday. “Born 4/14/12, 6 lbs 15 oz, 20 inches long. Looks like me lol.” Police found the boy, Keegan Schuchardt, unharmed at about 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Ligon said the boy, Keegan Schuchardt, had been in the care of Child Protective Services. A CPS spokeswoman, Gwen Carter, said the boy has since been reunited with family members. He was never in the legal custody of CPS, she said. She said CPS workers assisted police to make sure the family’s home environment was safe for the boy and that his relatives were aware of what needed to be done to keep him safe. He and his two siblings are with the same relatives, she added.
KTRK-TV, KHOU-TV and the Houston Chronicle contributed to this report.
