A St. Paul, Minnesota man who left a gun unattended while babysitting his girlfriend’s 2-year-old fled Minnesota after the boy shot himself by accident last week, according to charges.
The 39-year-old Earl Williams was charged in Ramsey County District Court for second-degree manslaughter and two counts of illegal possession of a firearm after he eventually surrendered himself to the police on Christmas day after fleeing the state following the boy’s accidental death, Star Tribune reported. (RELATED: Babysitter Charged With Pummeling Child To Death Allegedly Searched ‘Sudden Urge To Beat A Child That’s Not Yours’)
HOMICIDE UPDATE:
— Saint Paul Police Department (@sppdmn) December 28, 2020
The 2-year-old boy shot and killed on Dec. 23 has been ID’d as Jayse Damir Wilson.
Earl Williams, 39, of St. Paul, turned himself in Christmas night, was arrested and charged with Manslaughter in connection with the death.
It’s the 34th homicide of the year.
The 2-year-old boy, identified as Jayse Damir Wilson, was severely injured after he shot himself in the head in the early afternoon last Wednesday, CBS Minnesota reported.
Police officers and medics arrived at the apartment in St. Paul after someone dialed 911 reporting that a boy had “hurt his head,” according to CBS Minnesota. They found the boy with a gunshot wound on his forehead.
The boy was taken to an ambulance outside the building but died before it could leave the scene, the outlet reported.
Investigators discovered a pool of blood on the bathroom floor and retrieved a shell casing lying nearby. They also found a bullet hole near the ceiling, according to Star Tribune.
The boy’s mother told officers that she’d received a frantic phone call from Williams, who told her to return home because her son had “shot himself in the head,” according to charges, Star Tribune reported. He said to her that he’d left a gun in the bathroom and that Jaysehad “got to it,” the charges say.
Williams then told one of the toddler’s teen siblings to call 911 as he gathered a bag and fled the scene, according to Star Tribune.
Williams, who had fled the state, eventually turned himself in to authorities on Dec. 25, Star Tribune reported. He is jailed in lieu of $250,000 bail, according to the outlet.