Eleven-year-old Amya Frazier was shot and killed by her 14-year-old cousin weeks before Christmas this past December.
Amya went over to her cousin’s house on Dec. 5 to play a video game when her cousin picked up his father’s unsecured gun.
“Her cousin grabbed his father’s gun and decided to play with it due to his father’s negligence of leaving his gun lying around,” Amya’s mom Hope Frazier said during a recent press conference.
“His child grabbed it and shot my 11-year-old daughter in the head and ended her life.”
Amya Frazier died on Dec. 8, 2025.
“It is our responsibility as adults to store our guns correctly, place them in a safe place, and unloaded,” Hope Frazier said.
“Place the ammunition elsewhere, hidden so children can’t find it. Place the clip out of the gun.”
Ohio state Rep. Darnell T. Brewer, D-Cleveland, is introducing Amya’s Law — a bill that would penalize adults who leave firearms accessible to minors.
“This bill does not create a storage mandate,” Brewer said.
“It does not restrict lawful self defense. It does not penalize gun ownership. Instead, it imposes accountability only when a minor gains access to a neglectfully stored firearm and harm results.”
The gun owner would face a fourth-degree felony if a child accesses a neglectfully stored firearm and causes serious harm, and it would be a first-degree misdemeanor if a child gains access to a neglectfully stored firearm and causes physical harm, Brewer said.
“There is no violation unless the child actually gets a hold of the gun,” Brewer said.
The bill would also have a sales tax exemption for firearm safety devices and a nonrefundable income tax credit of up to $250 for gun safes, lockboxes, and trigger locks.
This bill is not about punishing gun owners, but about preventing tragedies, said Amya’s grandmother Amy Zahrani.
“A child finds a gun in a drawer, a friend brings a weapon into a home, a moment of curiosity turns into a lifetime of grief,” she said.
“These are not criminals. These are children. … We must do more to ensure firearms are stored safely.”
The Columbus Division of Police indicted 33-year-old Matthew Seymour on involuntary manslaughter and endangering children charges after Amya’s fatal shooting.
Seymour’s 14-old-son was charged with reckless homicide, according to Columbus Police.
“Gun violence doesn’t just happen somewhere else,” Zahrani said. “It doesn’t just happen to other people. It doesn’t just happen to certain people. It is happening even in middle class homes and safe neighborhoods.”
Amya Frazier loved butterflies and wanted to be both a doctor and a professional soccer player, her family said.
“She had her whole life ahead of her, and it was cut short,” Hope Frazier said.
“Don’t let my daughter be just a headline. Help her name mean something.”
There were more than 48,000 firearm-related deaths in the United States in 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Firearm injuries were the leading cause of death among children and teenagers ages 1-19, according to the CDC.
Brewer is also planning on introducing a bill that requires foster caregivers to safely secure firearms in their home and another bill that would require the state to create an Office of Violence Prevention within the Ohio Department of Health.
“It’s now time to make this known — gun violence should be eradicated here in Ohio,” he said.
Originally published by the Ohio Capital Journal. Republished here with permission.