Atlanta mother charged months after 7-year-old son dies in rolled-up window

Atlanta mother charged in son's April death

Investigators concluded Kandice Grace’s negligence led to her son’s death after a four-month investigation. A Fulton County arrest warrant charged her with murder and cruelty to children. A warrant for her arrest was issued Aug. 19.

ATLANTA - A 32-year-old woman has been charged after police said they found her 7-year-old son dead in a car while she was passed out nearby.

What we know:

The backstory:

According to Atlanta police, officers responded to the 300 block of Scott Street SW on April 6 after a man called 911 to report a boy’s head hanging out of a car window. When officers arrived, they found Kandice K. Grace unconscious from narcotics use in the passenger seat of the vehicle. Her son, identified as Mazi Simmons, was unresponsive in the back seat.

Police said Mazi’s head had been caught in a rolled-up window, choking him. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Two other children were also in the car at the time, according to investigators.

Kandice Grace. Courtesy of Atlanta Police Department

The 911 caller told police Grace had been at his home the night before and left the children in the car around 10:30 or 11:30 p.m. He said when he came outside the next morning around 8:30, he found Mazi stuck in the window.

During the investigation, detectives reported that Grace passed out while holding her youngest child during an interview. A warrant was obtained for her blood and urine, and test results from Aug. 8 showed she tested positive for opioids and THC, police said.

Dig deeper:

According to a GoFundMe for Simmons, Mazi was Grace's second child and her first child, Jordice, also died. It did not say how the first child died, though.

What's next:

Grace remains charged with murder and cruelty to children as the case moves forward.

Atlanta Crime and Public Safety News