Odessa woman pleads guilty in plot to take baby

An Odessa woman pleaded guilty this morning to her role in a failed plot to take a baby from a pregnant teen. Lauren M. Gash, 20, pleaded guilty to kidnapping, assaulting and restraining the teen July 30 inside a Blue Springs motel room. Authorities earlier had connected her to a plot that included the possibility of cutting the baby from the mother’s womb. Gash and her lawyer, bearing testimony at today’s hearing, said the plan was to let Howard deliver the baby before taking it and raising it as Gash’s. Gash admitted that she drove to the Clinton, Mo., home of 18-year-old Amanda Howard, whom she had met over the Internet. Howard was unemployed and single, and Gash told her she would drive her to some clothing and other items for her baby. Instead, Gash started driving toward Kansas City. When Howard realized something was... [read full story]