A family in Michigan is mourning the unexpected loss of a young woman and her unborn child. Kendall Berrington was pregnant with her first child and only weeks away from giving birth when she was shot and killed while picking up a drink at a local gas station. Because of the severity of her injuries, her unborn baby didn’t survive either. At first, police were unable to track down a suspect in the shooting, leading to a more intense investigation. But almost two weeks after the killing, the suspect has turned himself in. He’s a minor with a long history of committing crimes and is currently in custody.
Police were called to a Marathon gas station in Saginaw around 1:30 a.m. on December 31, 2025, WNEM reported. There, they found a man and a woman who had been shot. The woman was identified as 19-year-old Berrington. She was declared dead at the gas station.
“This is a heartbreaking loss of life, made even more tragic by the fact that Ms. Berrington was expecting a child,” Detective Sgt. Oscar Lopez said, per the outlet. “Our thoughts and prayers are with Kendall’s family, friends and loved ones as they face an unimaginable loss.”
At the time of the shooting, a suspect had not been identified.
Berrington was shot in the head, WJRT reported. Emergency responders discovered that she was nine months pregnant and due to give birth to a baby boy on January 14, 2026.
“It appears that she was at a hospital that night experiencing contractions and she stopped at a gas station to get a pop,” Saginaw County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Blair Stevenson shared.
A 22-year-old male friend of Berrington’s also was shot and is recovering in the hospital.
“There is another individual in the store and a shootout ensues almost instantaneously, and the victim was caught in the crossfire. It’s just a tragic situation,” Stevenson added.
On January 13, 2026, 17-year-old Korvareon Smith turned himself in to police, 94.5 The Moose reported. The following day, he was arraigned and charged with open murder, assault with intent to murder, homicide-willful killing of an unborn quick child, discharging a firearm in or at a building, and four counts of using a firearm to commit a felony.
According to court documents obtained by MLive and reported by Law & Crime, Smith drew a pistol “immediately upon entering” the gas station, opening fire on “another individual inside of the store.”
In addition to Berrington and her friend, a mother and her 7-year-old child were inside the gas station. They were able to escape unscathed, the prosecution said.
According to prosecutors, Smith is on probation and has been in and out of custody over the last several years. “It seems he cannot refrain from criminal behavior,” the documents read. The 17-year-old’s juvenile record dates back to 2021. He was reported as a runaway at the age of 15. Smith is being held without bond at Saginaw County Juvenile Center.
Berrington’s brother, Brent Morris, told WJRT that he and his sister were frequent visitors to the gas station. “Every night at least once a day we would be walking over to that gas station,” he said.
Berrington would have celebrated her birthday on January 10, only days before her due date. She had named her unborn child Roman, and the whole family was excited about the new addition.
“I was telling her that he was going to be my sidekick. I was excited, she was excited, everyone was excited,” Morris told WJRT.
In her obituary, Berrington was described as “always smiling, loved being around people, was the life of the party wherever she went, and was known as a great kid.” She also loved Stitch from the movie Lilo & Stitch. A GoFundMe account was set up by her sister to help cover funeral expenses and to support her mother.
