Harrel Braddy, 76, convicted in 2007 for the 1998 abduction and death of 5-year-old Quantisha “Candy” Maycock, is back before a jury that will decide whether to reinstate the death penalty. His original 11-1 death recommendation was vacated in 2017 after a rule requiring unanimous capital verdicts. A 2023 Florida law permitting an 8-4 jury vote means the current jury can again impose death. The case includes testimony that Quantisha suffered blunt-force trauma and later sustained alligator bites after being abandoned on Alligator Alley.
Man Convicted in 1998 Alligator Alley Killing Returns to Court as Jury Weighs New Death-Penalty Vote
Miami-Dade Corrections; AP Photo/J. Pat CarterHarrel Braddy; Quantisha "Candy" Maycock
A Florida man convicted in the 1998 abduction and death of 5-year-old Quantisha “Candy” Maycock has returned to court, where a jury must again decide whether he should face the death penalty.
Case Background
Harrel Braddy, 76, was convicted in 2007 of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping and related charges in connection with the Nov. 6, 1998 attack. A Miami-Dade County jury originally recommended death by an 11-1 vote, but that sentence was vacated in 2017 after the state required unanimity for capital sentences.
What Happened in 1998
According to court records, Braddy drove Shandelle Maycock, a woman he had met through a mutual church acquaintance, from work and later agreed to pick up her five-year-old daughter Quantisha. When Shandelle asked him to leave, he allegedly attacked and choked her into unconsciousness multiple times. She later woke in the backseat of a car with Quantisha in the front seat; after the vehicle rounded a corner both mother and child fell from the moving car.
Carl Juste/TNS via ZUMA Press Wire/ShutterstockHarrel Braddy in court on Jan. 5, 2026 in Miami, Florida.
Braddy reportedly put Quantisha back in the car, placed Shandelle in the trunk and drove for roughly 30–45 minutes before dragging Shandelle from the vehicle, choking her and threatening to kill her. Shandelle survived and flagged down motorists who called police.
Authorities say Braddy abandoned Quantisha along Interstate 75 in Broward County in a remote stretch known as Alligator Alley. Three days later two fishermen found a child’s body floating in a canal; it was later identified as Quantisha.
Medical Findings
The Broward County chief medical examiner testified that Quantisha suffered blunt force trauma to the left side of her head, which he concluded was the primary cause of death. He also described injuries consistent with sliding on a hard surface, and multiple alligator bites. The examiner stated Quantisha’s left arm had been bitten off by an alligator after she died, and additional bites to the torso and head likely occurred while she was unconscious.
AP Photo/J. Pat CarterQuantisha "Candy" Maycock
Legal Developments
Braddy’s original death sentence was overturned in 2017 after the Florida Supreme Court applied a standard requiring a unanimous jury to impose capital punishment. In 2023, however, Florida enacted a new law — signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis — allowing a death sentence to be imposed by an 8-4 jury vote. Under that change, the current jury can again consider whether Braddy should be executed despite lacking unanimity.
Defendant Background
Court records note Braddy has a long criminal history dating to 1984, including convictions for attempted murder, burglary, robbery and kidnapping.
Prosecutors say: evidence and witness testimony tie Braddy to the kidnapping, the violent attack on Shandelle Maycock, and the abandonment of the child on Alligator Alley. Defense arguments and sentencing mitigation are being evaluated in the current proceeding.
The jury’s decision will determine whether a death sentence is reinstated under Florida’s revised capital statute or whether an alternative sentence will be imposed.
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