Boston Mourns Pregnant Woman Killed by Robber

Hundreds of mourners, including Gov. Michael S. Dukakis and Boston Mayor Raymond L. Flynn, packed a church Saturday for the emotional funeral of a pregnant woman whose slaying has rocked Greater Boston.

Friends and family members at St. James Church in suburban Medford read aloud messages of love and grief over the loss of Carol Stuart, 30.

Stuart was seven months pregnant when she and her husband, Charles Stuart, 29, were abducted, robbed and shot Monday night shortly after leaving a birthing class at a Boston hospital.

The husband, unable to attend the funeral because he was hospitalized with a bullet wound to the abdomen, sent a message from Boston City Hospital that was read aloud by a family friend.

“Good night sweet wife, my love. God has called you to his hands. Not to take you away from me, but to bring you away from the cruelty and the violence that fills this world,” the message said.

Carol Stuart’s brother, Carl DiMaiti, spoke at the service, saying: “Sweet dreams, little sister. I know you’re in heaven waiting for each and every one of us. We love you; we miss you; we’ll never forget you.”

The Stuarts had just left the birthing class at Brigham and Women’s Hospital when a man climbed into their car, forced them to drive to Boston’s Mission Hill area, robbed them and then shot them before fleeing.

Carol Stuart was shot in the head and died that night after a son, who has been named Christopher, was delivered two months prematurely by Cesarean section. The baby was in the neonatal intensive care unit at Brigham and Women’s. Charles Stuart was described as being in stable condition.

Flynn, Dukakis, Boston Police Commissioner Francis Roache and Cardinal Bernard F. Law all attended the service at the picturesque brick church.

The shooting has prompted anger from Boston officials, police and area residents and has touched off a renewed push for the death penalty in Massachusetts.

Boston police said they were able to obtain a detailed description of the gunman from Charles Stuart and have narrowed their list of suspects to three or four.