A registered nurse has been charged with capital murder in the shooting death of a young mother and the abduction of her newborn baby outside a pediatrics clinic in Texas.
Verna McClain, 31, was charged early Wednesday in the killing of Kala Marie Golden, Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon told ABC's "Good Morning America."
Witnesses said an argument broke out between Golden and another woman as Golden left the Northwoods Pediatric Center in Spring on Tuesday afternoon with her 3-day-old son, Keegan, The Associated Press reported.
More from GlobalPost: LA Times: US troops pose for photos with Afghan corpses
The woman shot Golden up to seven times and snatched the baby from her arms before driving away in a Lexus. Golden cried out, “My baby, my baby," and lurched forward to grab her child as the vehicle drove off, according to MSNBC.
Golden was transported to a local hospital where she died of her wounds, the Houston Chronicle reported.
The newborn baby was found safe Tuesday evening and eventually reunited with family members, according to the Chronicle.
More from GlobalPost: Arizona governor vetoes bill allowing guns in public buildings
Ligon told ABC that authorities believe McClain shot the mother as part of a wider plan to kidnap any child and that Golden was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"There were statements as indicated in the arrest record that were made by Ms. McClain that led us to believe that, in fact, this was an intentional act on her part," Ligon said on "Good Morning America." "Not that Ms. Golden was targeted specifically, but that this was part of a plan to kidnap a child."
He made no mention of a man whom witnesses said they saw in the blood-splattered Lexus.
Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you. We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll help us unlock a matching gift of $67,000!