A pregnant woman was arrested in Chicago after she killed the father of her child during a fight, which took place when he allegedly attacked her just hours after her baby shower.
Keshia Golden has been charged with first-degree murder in connection to the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Calvin Sidney.
Cook County Judge Steven Watkins scheduled her trial to begin on August 17, and she is expected to return to court in July for a status hearing, according to CBS News.
Golden has many supporters following her arrest, with several people believing the killing was self-defense following Sidney’s alleged abuse.
“She reached for a knife to protect herself from her abuser, who was trying to kill her and her unborn child,” Golden’s attorney, Julie Koehler, said at a public rally in support of her client on April 6, according to WLS.
Koehler claimed that Sidney reportedly hit Golden, “grabbed her hair, slammed her head down on a kitchen counter, and the fight was then dragged into another room” at the time of the 2022 attack. “Keshia grabbed a knife and stabbed him in the leg,” Koehler added.
Prosecutors said that Golden and Sidney were arguing over the use of a microwave before the fatal stabbing took place. Golden has been accused of knocking “a plate of food” out of Sidney’s hands before he pushed her onto the counter, per WLS.
Golden then allegedly went to a bedroom with the knife. After Sidney entered the bedroom, Golden reportedly stabbed him to death while he was laying on a bed.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office said that they offered Golden a plea deal in March to lesser charges of second-degree murder.
However, Golden’s supporters gathered in Daley Plaza on April 6 and argued that all charges against her should be dropped.
“Keshia Golden, as we’ve said repeatedly, has been sent the chilling, horrifying message that she did not have the legal right to defend herself, that somehow her legal right was to die quietly in compliance with the law, and that is unacceptable,” Holly Krig, director of organizing for Moms United Against Violence and Incarceration, said, per CBS News.
Golden’s attorneys added that Sidney had a documented history of domestic violence and argued that Golden was protecting herself and her unborn child at the time of the stabbing.
“We plan to prove that Ms. Golden acted in defense of herself and her unborn child,” Cook County Assistant Public Defender Kyan Keenan said, per the outlet. “We believe that Ms. Golden had the right under the law and that the law exists for self-defense for these exact situations that Ms. Golden found herself in.”
Golden’s attorneys also said that they are confident she will be found not guilty if the case goes to trial.
“Ms. Golden should not be punished. People are outraged, as well they should be, and we believe that in the end the right thing will happen, and Ms. Golden will be found not guilty of any charges, because this is exactly what the law allows for when it allows an affirmative defense of self-defense,” Keenan said.
A spokesperson for the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the specifics of Golden’s case. “In every case, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office carefully evaluates the facts and the law to make appropriate charging decisions,” the spokesperson added in a statement to CBS News.
