Man gets life without parole in shooting death of 7-year-old outside Phipps Plaza

ATLANTA — The man accused of shooting and killing a 7-year-old girl in the parking lot of Phipps Plaza has been sentenced to life without parole.

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Kennedy Maxie was shot on Dec. 21, 2020 as she sat in the back seat of her aunt’s car outside of Saks Fifth Avenue. She died the day after Christmas.

Prosecutors said Daquan Reed, who was a convicted felon, was angry after he was robbed in the parking lot and started shooting. Maxie was randomly shot.

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Reed was convicted of murder, three counts of felony murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, criminal damage to property in the first degree and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

There was not a dry eye in the courtroom after heart-wrenching testimony from Maxie’s family.

Channel 2′s Dave Huddleston was outside the courtroom, where he talked to Maxie’s mother and other family members Monday.

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“I never imagined she would be stolen from me,” Mariah Maxie told Huddleston in an emotional interview on Channel 2 Action News at 4 p.m. “I never imagined she would be hurt the way that she was.”

During the sentencing hearing, Reed spoke via Zoom from the Fulton County Jail and said he’s trying to be a better man.

“This situation is very devastating and hurtful, and I do have a heart,” Reed said.

The judge didn’t buy it.

“Up until today, Mr. Reed has shown no remorse whatsoever,” the judge said.

Mariah Maxie said she still visits her daughter’s grave every Sunday.

“Before I leave, I whisper to my daughter, hoping she can hear me, that I wish we could be together,” Maxie said. “I run my finger over my lips and run those fingers over her name before heading home.”

Suspect identified in murder of 7-year-old Kennedy Maxie near Phipps Plaza

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