Mother Killed In St. Paul Shooting Was Pregnant With Another Child, Family Says

ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) -- A 26-year-old man is in custody in connection with a triple homicide of a mother and her two children over the weekend in St. Paul.

WCCO has learned that mother was also 2 months pregnant.

Family members say 30-year-old D'Zondria Wallace, her 14-year-old daughter La'Porsha and 11-year-old son Ja'Corbie were found inside their Jessie Street home in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood.

WCCO's Reg Chapman has more from family members who are in shock but demanding answers.

RELATED: St. Paul Triple Murder: Police Arrest Man Suspected Of Killing Woman, 2 Children

"La'Porsha and Ja'Corbie were my brother and sister. They lived with us a while and D'Zondria was my favorite cousin," said Moesha Whitehall.

Whitehall says she is finding it hard to believe her family members are gone.

"I feel numb. I don't know how to feel. I don't know if I should feel sad, I don't know if I should feel mad," Whitehall said.

Whitehall says she spoke to her cousin D'Zondria often. She says she was looking forward to bringing another life into this world.

"She told me that she was pregnant in about November or December," Whitehall said.

Those dreams were snatched Saturday evening when a call to police for a welfare check sent St. Paul officers to D'Zondria's Jessie Street address.

She told officers she was fine.

An hour later officers were called back to the home and learned she was not OK.

"I was like, no. Like I just talked to them, you can't tell me that my cousins are gone because I just talked to them. I took it tough because my last words with her was, like, she says, 'What are you doing?' and I'm thinking, I could've saved you," Whitehall said.

"Even well-trained people don't necessarily see red flags, so it's not something family can ever blame themselves for and certainly there is only one abuser in the situation and that is who is to be blamed," said Maria Maier.

Community based advocacy groups like St. Paul and Ramsey County Abuse Intervention Program say women who are pregnant and in an abusive situation typically wind up victims of deadly force.

"Suga had messaged me 10 minutes before all this even transpired. Before her life was taken, so I was in disbelief," Whitehall said.

This family says it can't begin to heal until they learn what led to this tragedy.

Whitehall set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for funeral expenses.

There is a state domestic abuse hotline available 24 hours a day. The number is 866-223-1111.