Baby cut from mum by her killer: police

A woman used a stun gun to subdue an expectant mother before killing her and cutting the baby boy from her body, a police investigator testified yesterday.

Detective Chad Winn of the Kentucky state police, speaking during a preliminary hearing in Warren County District Court, said Kathy Michelle Coy, 33, told Jamie Stice, 21, they were going shopping for baby supplies but took her instead to a wooded area with plans to kill her.

Winn said Coy eventually led investigators to Stice's body and gave details of the slaying.

"She advised that she stunned her, her throat was slit, her wrists were slit, she was disembowelled," Winn said as members of Stice's family fled the courtroom in tears. "The baby was obviously cut out of her."

Stice's remains were found off a dirt road in southern Kentucky on April 14, less than a day after she was last seen leaving her home with Coy. Coy was arrested after showing up at a Bowling Green hospital with a newborn baby, but no signs of having given birth, Winn said.

Warren County District Judge Sam Potter sent the case to the grand jury. Coy's public defender, Jim Gibson, objected to the preliminary hearing, saying Coy's competence and mental state were uncertain.

Warren County Commonwealth's Attorney Chris Cohron said he might seek the death penalty for Coy, but would make that decision after any mental health issues were litigated.

James Reynolds, the baby's father, says the infant is in good condition and that his name is Isaiah. He declined further comment.

Winn said there was evidence that Coy, who claimed to have had a miscarriage, planned to kill a pregnant woman and steal a baby. He said Coy approached her 13-year-old daughter in early April about taking part in such a plot. When the daughter baulked, Coy passed it off as a joke.

Soon after, Coy approached her 14-year-old son and asked if he would take part in a murder, Winn said. The son refused and the detective said Coy did not bring it up again.

- AP