Daughter of Woman Killed in Prichard Church Shooting Asks Suspect to Surrender
Grace Carter, 65, was struck by a stray bullet inside a Prichard church. Kaillyn Harris now faces murder charges as Carter's daughter asks for grace.
The daughter of a woman killed by a stray bullet inside a Prichard church is asking the shooter to do what police could not for days: turn themselves in.
Grace Carter, 65, was shot Tuesday night inside Everlasting Life Holiness Church when gunfire outside the building sent a bullet through the door and struck her. Days later, Prichard police identified 26-year-old Kaillyn Harris as a suspect, and by Thursday evening Harris was in custody, charged with murder and shooting into an occupied building. Harris had a prior Mobile County arrest record, including insurance fraud charges earlier in the year.
In a statement before the arrest, Carter’s daughter, Dee Carter, addressed whoever fired the shot directly.
“To the person who did this, my mother would ask God to forgive you. We wish you no harm or ill will. I just ask that if you have a heart, a soul to please turn yourself in. My mother’s name was Grace and she would want Grace to be given to you,” she said.
She described her mother as a brilliant, god-fearing woman and her best friend of 30 years, saying she takes comfort that Carter died in the place she loved, with people she loved, doing what she loved.
Prichard police called the shooting “senseless and reckless.” Anyone with information was asked to contact Prichard Police at (251) 452-2211.
What Happens Next
Murder is a Class A felony in Alabama, punishable by 20 years to life in prison. In Alabama, felony cases typically begin in district court, where a judge can hold a preliminary hearing, before a grand jury decides whether to issue an indictment that sends the case to circuit court for trial. A criminal charge is an accusation, and Harris is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
