Sandy Springs police on Wednesday announced a second arrest in the December beating death of 2-year-old Fallon Fridley.
Jeffrey Scott Meyers, 28, was the boyfriend of Kirstie Flood, the toddler’s full-time babysitter who is facing murder and aggravated battery charges in her death. Meyers was taken into custody on second-degree charges of murder and cruelty to children.
Fallon was found unresponsive Dec. 9 in her apartment on Monterey Parkway in Sandy Springs. The toddler was rushed to a Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta location, where she was pronounced dead, according to police.
Credit: Family photo
Credit: Family photo
Flood, 29, was arrested two days later. The Smyrna woman initially told police the toddler hit her head on a slide at a park and didn’t wake up, according to her arrest warrant. Police said an autopsy found the girl “suffered severe injuries that resulted in her death during her care by the suspect.”
Her injuries included a massive skull fracture and lacerations to the liver, spleen and colon.
Investigators searched Flood’s phone and found internet searches for “what type of people enjoy abusing other people’s children” and “what does it mean to have a sudden urge to beat a child that’s not yours,” according to the warrant.
Flood had been Fallon’s full-time babysitter since August, but she had been a friend of the family for years and was known as a loving mother. Samantha Shelton, who employs Fallon’s mother at Furkids Animal Shelters and Rescues, said it would have been impossible to know what was coming.
“It’s one thing to lose your child to an illness or an accident you can’t control, but to have someone you knew and trusted harm your child, kill your child,” Shelton said. “It’s going to be a long road to recovery. Our hearts are so heavy.”
Credit: Family Photo
Credit: Family Photo
Fallon loved animals and would often help her mother Kristin Fridley Gantt in her work as a veterinary technician for the rescue organization. The toddler took after Gantt in every way, down to her tender-hearted nature, Shelton said.
An emotional Gantt, speaking with Channel 2 Action News in the days following Flood’s arrest, said Fallon was “the light of my life, the love of my life.”
“It’s like she snapped,” Gantt said of Flood. “It’s like this evil was in front of my face for years and I never saw it.”
Police did not release any further information Wednesday on their decision to bring charges against Meyers. It was unknown if he was with Flood at the time she reported Fallon’s injuries to police.
We are working to learn more.
— Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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