A Georgia man has been charged with homicide and feticide after stabbing his pregnant wife to death.
Kyle Dean, a former soldier, had a history of domestic violence against his wife, 20-year-old Chasity Dean, who was pregnant at the time of her death. According to the Columbus Police Department, Chasity had a protection order in place against Kyle due to his ongoing abusive behavior.
“We learned through medical staff that Miss Dean was approximately 13 weeks pregnant,” Detective Kevin Baldwin of the Columbus Police Department Violent Crimes Unit told WRBL. Social media posts indicated that she was expecting a baby girl. Surveillance footage showed that Chasity clung to a railing in an apartment in an effort to evade Kyle, who was trying to force her to come with him. When she refused, he put her into a chokehold and then stabbed her. Before this incident, she had sought refuge at Hope Harbour, a home for victims of domestic violence.
“She was a beautiful 20-year-old lady. Had her whole life ahead of her,” said Crystal Sund, a legal advocate for Hope Harbour. “She was excited to start a second life, free, away from the abuse and the horrors that she had endured under Mr. Dean’s hold that he had on her.”
READ: Study: Pregnant women more likely to die by homicide than by maternal illness
After leaving Hope Harbour, she had seemingly moved into a new apartment, away from Kyle. At the same time, Hope Harbour continued to help her with resources to ensure her safety, like a year-long protection order.
After the murder, Kyle fled to Alabama, where he was apprehended and extradited to Georgia. In a court appearance, he pled not guilty to several charges, including murder, aggravated assault, feticide, possession of a firearm during a crime, and kidnapping. Despite pleading not guilty, Baldwin testified in court that Kyle confessed to the murder during a police interview, saying he was “angry because she wouldn’t go outside with him” and that Chasity was in a different apartment because she was afraid of him.
Homicide has become a leading cause of death for pregnant women, exceeding all the leading health-related causes of maternal mortality.
