On a summer evening in Springfield, Massachusetts, the life of Lamar Prentiss Kelly, a 26-year-old Black male, was tragically cut short. On August 9, 2014, Kelly, known to friends and family as "Kelz," was fatally shot near the William DeBerry Elementary School. He was a 2006 graduate of the Springfield Academy of Excellence and had become a master barber in 2011.
He was also a father.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Springfield police began their investigation, suggesting that the homicide may have been drug or gang-related. Authorities announced that they were searching for a small gray Honda that was seen speeding away from the area where Kelly was killed. Friends and family mourned the loss of a man they remembered as a loving father and a talented barber.
Despite the initial leads and public appeals for information, the investigation into Lamar Kelly's death seems to have stalled, with no publicly announced arrests or naming of suspects in the years that have followed. Online sources and news reports available to the public have not provided any updates on the case, leaving the circumstances of his death and the identity of his killer or killers unresolved. The search for justice for Lamar Kelly and his family appears to be ongoing.
