ATLANTA — The mother of an infant shot and killed in Atlanta is saying justice is long overdue for her baby boy. It has been two and a half years since 6-month-old Grayson Fleming-Gray was killed in his car seat in Atlanta.
He was hit by a stray bullet intended for another car in January 2022 near Atlanta's Anderson Park. It was a crime that outraged the city, but his mom says the two people suspected in his death have still not been brought to trial.
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Still, more than two years later, Kerri Gray says she sees signs of her baby in the trees.
"When the leaves are out and the wind blows, maybe that's him," she said.
The beauty of Grayson's life is written across her heart. She reads poems that people wrote for her son in the wake of his death.
"I am home. Where I have gone, I am tall. I am as wide as the world is tall," she said, reading one of those poems.
She holds those words close now that she can no longer hold her little boy.
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"I say, "Merry Christmas, Grayson," kissing a locket around her neck. "I love you, Grayson; good morning. That's all I get. And I wish they would just take accountability. And let. Me. go. Let me go," she said.
For two and a half years she has waited for justice. In her heart, that's too long.
The National Center for State Courts Data shows that most felony cases in the country are finished within 365 days—1 year.
She has been waiting more than 850 days for a court date.
"Unfortunately, I have to keep it in the forefront of my mind until the trial starts, and unfortunately, it has not yet," she said.
Court records show there are not any scheduled hearings on the calendar for suspects Dequasie Little and Sharice Ingram.
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A spokesperson for the Fulton County District Attorney's Office says it is prepared to go to trial and anticipates a trial date in the fall.
Two trial dates have been canceled already as prosecutors added additional charges against the suspects.
"When you think you're just coming to the finish line and then all of the sudden, it's like a 'gotcha' where they flip a sign and it says start. And you're at the start and starting all over again," Gray said.
Adding to the hardship of living without her son, she has had to try and move forward without her car.
Grayson died in her vehicle, so it was impounded as evidence for the trial.
Two and a half years later, she is still waiting for the trial, and waiting to get her car back.
Gray says she wants them held accountable now.
"Not only did you take something from me, but you put fear in a neighborhood. You've put fear in a city. Nothing's being said about it; nothing's being done about it. It's like just another day," she said.
She says everyone should be alarmed at the rate of gun violence against children in the United States.
"It seems like you don't care, it seems like you're so focused on everything else. Stop and look around, our numbers are growing. And not just in the state of Georgia, in the entire country. Our numbers are growing," she said.
Statistics show she's right.
The rate of gun violence against children increased by 46% from 2019-2022, according to the most recent data available. That breaks down to seven kids a day dying by gun violence in the U.S.
She doesn't want anyone else's baby to be one of them.
"In one way or another, we are going to lose our future," she warned.
She says friends who have supported her, Grayson's Godmother, Melanie Cintron, Nicole, Michelle, Angie, Tracy, and Sabrina, have meant the world to her. She said it takes a community to get through this grief.
When the time comes, she asks people to wear orange to raise awareness and for her son Grayson when she has to go to court. She hopes to send a strong message once the case finally goes to trial.
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