Kandice Grace, Atlanta, Georgia mom charged with murder after 7-year-old-son, Mazi Simmons gets his head stuck in car window after parent passes out in front driver’s seat

ATLANTA, GA — Nearly six months after a 7-year-old boy died in a tragic car window accident, prosecutors in Georgia have charged his mother, Kandice Keiamber Grace, 32, with second-degree murder and second-degree child cruelty.

The child, Mazi Simmons, was discovered on April 6 around 9:30 a.m. when Atlanta police responded to reports of an unresponsive person outside an apartment complex in southwest Atlanta.

According to the police incident report, officers found the young boy in the back seat of his mother’s vehicle with his head stuck in a partially rolled-up window. He was unconscious, not breathing, and later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

Mother Allegedly Passed Out in Front Seat

Investigators revealed that Grace was in the driver’s seat, passed out, at the time of the tragedy. Two of her younger children were also in the car alongside Mazi.

The report states that Mazi became trapped while seated beside his siblings. It remains unclear how the child’s head came to be lodged in the window, but authorities believe the positioning of his body caused strangulation.

Witness Account: “His Head Was Hanging Out of the Window”

A witness told police that Grace had visited his home around 10 p.m. the night before. She allegedly chose to leave her children in the car instead of bringing them inside.

The following morning, the same witness said he noticed Grace’s car still in the parking lot. To his horror, he saw the 7-year-old boy’s head hanging from the back window.

The man banged on the vehicle in an attempt to wake Grace, but she remained unresponsive. Emergency services were called immediately, but it was too late.

Toxicology Results Point to Drug Use

A search warrant was executed for Grace, and subsequent blood and urine tests came back positive for opioids and THC.

Court filings indicate that prosecutors believe Grace’s drug use contributed directly to her negligence, leading to her son’s preventable death.

Legal Proceedings

Grace was formally arrested on Monday and is currently being held at the Fulton County Jail without bond.

The case has drawn widespread outrage, with many questioning how a young child could have been left unsupervised in such dangerous conditions.

Authorities continue to investigate the circumstances leading up to the boy’s death, while Grace awaits trial.