In Michigan, a tragic incident unfolded when a 19-year-old pregnant woman, who had stopped for a soda at a gas station, was fatally shot in the head alongside her unborn child. The assailant, another teenager, entered the store and began firing immediately, according to authorities.

Saginaw County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Blair Stevenson described the event as a swift and deadly exchange of gunfire, which inadvertently claimed the life of the young woman, Kendall Berrington. During the arraignment of the accused, 17-year-old Korvareaon Smith, charges were announced including open murder and homicide of an unborn child, as reported by ABC affiliate WJRT.

Berrington, who had been experiencing contractions earlier that evening, made a brief stop at the gas station on New Year’s Eve, unaware of the impending danger. Court records, sourced from MLive.com, reveal that Smith pulled out a gun as soon as he entered the Marathon gas station on Court Street in Saginaw and targeted another individual present. A 22-year-old man accompanying Berrington was also critically wounded. Fortunately, a mother and her 7-year-old child inside the store managed to escape harm.

“It’s just a tragic situation,” Stevenson remarked, emphasizing the reckless decision by Smith to incite violence despite the presence of innocent bystanders, according to reports from MLive.com.

“It’s just a tragic situation.” Stevenson said, with prosecutors noting in the court documents how Smith chose to “start a war” despite there being people in the store, MLive.com reports.

“The instant offenses were callous acts of violence, and to say Defendant presents a severe danger to the community would be an understatement,” the documents charge.

Smith is reportedly on probation and has been in and out of custody multiple times over the years, according to prosecutors. “It seems he cannot refrain from criminal behavior,” the court documents state.

The teen’s juvenile record dates back to 2021 and includes adjudications of being a runaway, tampering with a probation tether [electronic monitoring device], fleeing police, and operating a motor vehicle without a license, according to MLive.com. Smith cut off his monitoring device in May 2023 and was “AWOL for nearly two weeks … before being apprehended by police and placed in detention,” prosecutors say.

The teen also went “AWOL,” or absent without official leave, in July 2023 before being placed in a residential detention facility, MLive.com reports. He has reportedly failed court-ordered drug tests multiple times in the past, as well.

Berrington’s family says she was due to deliver a son named Roman on Jan. 14. Her birthday was on Jan. 10.

“She adored the character Stitch, from Lilo and Stitch,” Berrington’s obituary says. “Kendall was always smiling, loved being around people, was the life of the party wherever she went, and was known as a great kid. She will be forever missed by her family, friends, and all who knew her.”

Berrington’s brother told WJRT after the shooting that she and her family would visit the gas station frequently.

“Every night at least once a day we would be walking over to that gas station,” Brent Morris said.

Smith surrendered to Saginaw police on Jan. 13 while accompanied by a parent, according to MLive.com. He is scheduled to appear for a probable cause conference on Wednesday and is being held without bond.