Local

15-year-old charged in shooting of pregnant Duquesne teen

DUQUESNE, Pa. — Allegheny County homicide detectives said Tuesday that they arrested a 15-year-old in the shooting of a pregnant Duquesne teen last month.

Authorities said Eric Taylor was arrested and is facing adult charges in the shooting that killed Darae Delgado’s unborn son.

Delgado was seven months pregnant when she opened the door to her Duquesne home on May 26 and was hit by four bullets, one of which went straight into her stomach.
 
The teen lost her unborn baby, but doctors said the child may have saved her life.

Channel 11’s Courtney Brennan learned on Tuesday that Taylor and Delgado knew each other prior to the incident. Family members said the two played Little League together when they were 6 years old. However, police said they are unaware of the motive.

“I’m not a heartless person, I do feel bad. I know his mom, his grandma, his uncles. I’m not happy that it’s him at all. I was very shocked to find out it was him,” Delgado’s mother, DeAnna Weems, said.

According to police, Taylor told detectives he shot Delgado because he wanted to shoot somebody and he had a gun.

Taylor remains in the Allegheny County Jail facing several charges, including attempted homicide, aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person and homicide of an unborn child.

"I really appreciate how much they've put in, not just letting my daughter's case fall back into the files and never get solved. So we want to thank them, my whole family thanks them," Weems said.

Delgado buried her unborn child last week and still has several surgeries in front of her.

“She has a hard time sleeping at night. She has nightmares,” Weems said.

Related story: Family prepares to bury unborn child killed in shooting