A 17-YEAR-OLD girl was kept on life support in a desperate bid to save her baby after being shot in the head in a road rage attack.
Seventeen-year-old Katelynn Strate lost her life in a tragic shooting on Sunday morning while she and her boyfriend were driving to his mother’s residence in Louisiana.
The couple’s car and another travelling in the same direction began tailgating and brake-checking each other, according to local outlet Nola.com.
The driver of the second car – identified as 54-year-old Barry West – then began firing into the Ford Expedition.
Katelynn, who was seven months pregnant, was struck in the head as she sat in the front passenger seat.
She was rushed to the hospital and placed on life support while doctors performed an emergency C-section.
The baby is being monitored in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Despite the little girl weighing just three pounds and 11 ounces, she is in stable condition, authorities said.
Katelynn could not recover from her injuries, her heartbroken family earlier revealed.
The family took her off life support soon after and preparations are underway for her funeral.
“[Her] mother is devastated,” family friend Katie Cancienne told Nola.com.
“She just lost her baby, and now she’s a grandmother.”
A GoFundMe campaign was started in her memory, stating: “We are collecting donations for Katelynn Strate, aged 17, who was tragically killed in a road rage incident in Ponchatoula, Louisiana, while she was 27 weeks pregnant.
“Her baby survived, and we need assistance to cover Katelynn’s funeral costs, medical bills, and the necessary baby supplies for her grandmother, who is now responsible for the baby’s care.”
Barry West was arrested and held at the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office, facing four charges of attempted second-degree murder, as well as illegal weapon use and obstruction of justice, the sheriff’s office announced on Monday.
Sheriff Gerald Sticker said: “This is a senseless tragedy… with no logical reason for this family to be experiencing this heartbreak right now.”
It comes as a young woman tragically died after suffering a severe allergic reaction following a CT scan.
Leticia Paul, 22, has a history of kidney stones and was at Alto Vale hospital in Rio do Sul, Brazil, for a routine examination.
She experienced a severe reaction to a contrast agent used in CT and MRI scans, which includes a special dye that enhances the visibility of organs and tissues in medical images.
