Candice Mackie’s relatives describe a life centered on her 5-year-old daughter as prosecutors pursue charges against the child’s father.
LEXINGTON, Ky. — In the days after Candice Mackie died, relatives spoke less about the damaged house and delivery truck that drew police to Valhalla Drive than about the 34-year-old mother’s relationship with her young daughter and the future she expected to share with her.
Mackie’s aunt told local reporters that Mackie was especially excited to take part in milestones during her 5-year-old daughter’s school years, from classroom events to school pictures. Her obituary described motherhood as the defining part of her life and said Mackie and her daughter spent time reading, learning together and watching Disney movies. Those family memories have become part of the public account of a case otherwise dominated by allegations of domestic violence, a delivery truck driven into a home and a fatal stabbing. The man accused in Mackie’s death is her former boyfriend, Dario Williams, who is also the girl’s father.
Mackie, who had roots in both Lexington and Nicholasville, was born Oct. 1, 1991, according to her obituary. It said she attended Boyd County High School and Sullivan University and was a member of Good Faith Church. Relatives described her as generous and caring. The obituary listed a large extended family and said a celebration of her life was planned. Local television coverage showed that flowers and candles were placed near the Lexington residence after her death, creating a small neighborhood memorial as the criminal investigation moved into court.
Before the killing, Mackie had been living with her uncle, Emmit Murphy, for several months. Murphy said she moved there amid difficulties involving Williams. He described a long relationship that had included previous police involvement and said Mackie had tried to navigate continued contact in part because she and Williams shared a child. Homicide Detective Nicholas Music later testified that Mackie and Williams had been in a relationship for about 10 years. Public records and family interviews point to a lengthy and troubled history, but authorities have not publicly identified a specific motive for what happened Sept. 3.
The emergency that morning initially reached authorities as a report of a commercial vehicle striking a residence. Lexington police were sent to the 3300 block of Valhalla Drive around 10 a.m. Officers found a FedEx delivery truck extending into the home and Mackie suffering from apparent stab wounds. Emergency responders transported her to a hospital with life-threatening injuries. She died later that day. The Fayette County coroner identified her, and Lexington police subsequently included Mackie’s death on the city’s 2026 homicide list, recording the cause as stabbing.
Police arrested Williams near the scene. Court records cited in local reporting allege that he intentionally drove the FedEx truck through the garage to confront Mackie. Investigators say the confrontation then moved outside, where Mackie was stabbed. The most detailed account presented publicly came at a Sept. 9 preliminary hearing, when Music testified about surveillance footage, Williams’ statements to investigators and evidence recovered from the area. Williams has pleaded not guilty, and none of the allegations against him have been established by a verdict.
Music testified that Williams was supposed to be delivering packages in Versailles on the morning of Mackie’s death but instead went to the Valhalla Drive home. The detective said Williams told investigators that he tried to enter through the front door, saw people at the residence and then drove the truck into the structure. Music said another person had been outside with Mackie and left before police arrived. Investigators were still working to identify that individual at the time of the hearing, and public reporting reviewed through Oct. 19 did not establish that person’s identity.
Evidence described by Music placed the fatal confrontation outside the house. He testified that surveillance video showed Williams walking away and Mackie collapsing on a sidewalk before 911 was called. Police also recovered a green switchblade knife near the intersection of Valhalla Drive and Grafton Drive. Music said the video did not capture the stabbing itself. He further testified that, during an interview at police headquarters, Williams admitted stabbing Mackie several times. That account was presented as testimony in a preliminary hearing and can be challenged as the criminal case proceeds.
The legal history between Mackie and Williams predates the homicide. Local reporting based on court records shows that Mackie sought an emergency protective order in 2022 that later expired. More recently, a judge signed a warrant July 8 after Mackie accused Williams of assaulting her at her uncle’s house and damaging property. The July case included allegations of fourth-degree assault involving domestic violence and second-degree criminal mischief. The warrant was still outstanding on Sept. 3 and was served only after Williams was arrested in connection with Mackie’s death.
Murphy told reporters that the July episode included damage to the home’s front door and mailbox. He said he had encouraged his niece to report earlier alleged violence and had tried over time to assist both Mackie and Williams. No public record reviewed for this article explains why the July warrant remained unserved for nearly two months. It is also not possible from the available evidence to conclude whether earlier service of that warrant would have changed what happened Sept. 3. What the record shows is that a prior domestic-violence complaint was pending when Mackie was killed.
Williams appeared in Fayette District Court after his arrest and pleaded not guilty. Police announced charges including murder related to domestic violence and first-degree burglary, in addition to the offenses associated with the earlier warrant. At the Sept. 9 preliminary hearing, Judge Bruce Bell found probable cause and sent the case toward a grand jury. Bell kept Williams’ bond at $1 million. A probable-cause ruling is an early procedural decision and does not determine whether a defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
FedEx said after the incident that Williams was no longer providing service on behalf of the company. The company also said it was cooperating with the Lexington Police Department and expressed sympathy for Mackie’s loved ones. Publicly available reporting has not established the precise employment or contractor relationship Williams had with the company or provided a full explanation of how the vehicle was assigned that morning. The truck remains a prominent part of the allegations because investigators say it was used to enter the home, but the homicide charge concerns the alleged killing of Mackie.
For Mackie’s family, the court process now moves forward alongside a much more personal transition. Their public comments have repeatedly returned to the daughter Mackie left behind. Relatives described Mackie as deeply invested in the child’s daily life and eager for the ordinary events that accompany starting school. That portrayal differs sharply from the violent circumstances described in court, and it places the loss in terms beyond a case number: a parent no longer present for the years she had expected to share with her child.
The prosecution has not yet reached the stage at which a jury determines guilt. After the preliminary hearing, the case was directed to a grand jury, which can decide whether formal felony charges should proceed in circuit court. As of Oct. 19, the latest public material reviewed for this article did not identify a subsequent trial or final disposition. Williams remains accused, not convicted, while Mackie’s family continues to memorialize her as a mother, daughter, sister, niece and relative whose life extended far beyond the manner of her death.
Author note: Last updated Oct. 19, 2026.