Gunman in killing of 21-year-old pregnant woman in St. Paul pleads guilty

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - A man charged in the shooting death of a pregnant woman, the result of an unintended target, has pleaded guilty to second-degree drive-by murder.

Paul Harris was scheduled to go to trial next week but instead will head to sentencing in November. As a result of the plea, the state agreed to drop two lesser counts against him for the death of Gabby Dehoyos.

Dehoyos, 21, was shot in the head while riding in a Kia SUV with her boyfriend and three young children on March 13, 2023.

"I'm so numb right now that I don't even know how I feel," Gabby’s mother, Debbie Dehoyos, told FOX 9 back in March. "The only thing that hurts me is like, why did that have to happen to her?"

Debbie and other loved ones described Gabby as all glamour and laughs.

"My baby, she was beautiful inside and out," Dehoyos said.

Debbie said the multigenerational family all lived under one roof. And Gabby was so excited as they were exploring to move into a new home with more space and a bigger yard for the kids, all under the age of four.

"The only thing that bothers me is that my grandkids are never going to know who she really was," said Debbie Dehoyos. "Or they will never remember her voice or all her, all her smell or her perfumes. It’s everything."

Gabby Dehoyos was shot in the area of the I-94 ramp and old Sears store location in St. Paul, near the intersection of St. Anthony Avenue and Marion Street around 5 p.m. Authorities report a gunman pulled right up alongside and fired.

After Gabby was struck, the boyfriend immediately drove to nearby Regions Hospital, but she did not survive her injuries. Her family learned then, she was seven weeks pregnant. 

According to court filings, Harris has a criminal history, including a 2018 juvenile court adjudication for burglary. He has also been convicted twice of possessing a firearm by an ineligible person and is currently on supervised release.