An Indiana man, Jeremy McBride, 36, has been arrested after allegedly confessing to shooting his pregnant estranged wife, Kayla Netherland because he believed the child she was carrying was not his. On Thursday, January 23, McBride was charged with Attempted Murder and Feticide, the latter for the intentional termination of Netherland’s pregnancy.
According to a probable cause affidavit cited by WISH-TV, the incident occurred on Sunday, January 19, when officers with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department responded to a home in the 700 block of Pleasant Run Parkway Drive North just after 6 p.m.
A neighbor discovered McBride in the bathroom, standing next to Netherland, who was lying on the ground bleeding. No one else was in the home at the time, court documents reveal. Officers arriving at the scene found Netherland suffering from gunshot wounds to her back. She was rushed to the hospital, where doctors determined she was 20 weeks pregnant.
Tragically, her unborn child did not survive. McBride was not at the residence when police arrived but allegedly called 911 to confess to the shooting. He was arrested within 30 minutes. According to Fox 59, McBride admitted to police that he had purchased a gun and spent days planning the crime. He practiced firing the weapon at a shooting range and intended to kill his estranged wife, her unborn child, and then himself.
“During the course of the interview, McBride informed detectives multiple times that he had gone to [the residence] with the intention to kill K. McBride, to kill the fetus K. McBride was carrying, and then kill himself,” Detective Ahmad stated in the affidavit. Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears added, “Certainly what is alleged is this person went to great lengths to carry out what he intended to do.”
Prosecutors also discovered notes written by McBride expressing frustration with Netherland’s alleged infidelity and their failed relationship. He reportedly admitted his anger stemmed from the fact that “he and his wife hadn’t gotten divorced, yet she had gotten pregnant” with another man’s child.
Netherland’s family shared their devastation with WRTV: “She was 5 months pregnant with her miracle baby, after several failed pregnancies in the past, and she has lost her baby due to this outrageous crime committed against her. She is alive, and not paralyzed, thank God.”
Following multiple surgeries, Netherland has undergone significant medical procedures, including the removal of her left ovary and fallopian tube. McBride is scheduled for his initial court hearing on Friday, January 24.