In the early hours of a Tuesday morning in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, the life of six-year-old Malachi Fryer came to a tragic and abrupt end. On June 5, 2018, the young boy, a student at New Highland Elementary School, found a handgun that had been left unattended on a table in his home on West Airview Drive. He took the weapon into his room, where he accidentally shot himself. His mother's call to 911 was too late; he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Malachi was a male who had just completed the first grade.
The firearm belonged to a friend of Malachi's mother, 30-year-old Jacory Williams of Radcliff. Williams had been at the residence to play video games with the boy's mother. Following the incident, Williams was taken into custody by law enforcement. He was subsequently charged with possession of a handgun by a convicted felon.
The community was left to grapple with the senseless loss of a child described as special in many ways. Those who knew Malachi remembered a little comedian with a smile that could warm your heart and a laugh that was contagious. He was known for his positive attitude and his love for people, never meeting a stranger. Basketball was his passion and joy, a pastime that brought him immense pleasure. His death sent ripples of grief through his school and the wider community, leaving behind a void in the lives of those who knew and loved him.
