3-Year-Old Accidentally Killed Himself with Gun While Mom Slept: Police

After a 3-year-old boy accidentally shot himself at his family’s Ohio home, his mother, Carley Dials, 29, has been arrested for alleged involuntary manslaughter in connection to his death.

Officers were called to the 6600 block of Kodiak Dr. near Canal Winchester for a reported shooting just before 9 a.m. local time on Thursday, Sept. 18. There, officers found Cartier Smith suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead less than an hour later, the police said in a complaint, according to ABC6 and the Columbus Dispatch.

Detective conducting a preliminary investigation “determined Smith accessed an unsecure handgun inside the residence and unintentionally shot himself,” the police said, per a press release. “The preliminary investigation determined the handgun was accessible to Smith because of the actions of Carley Dials.”

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According to the complaint filed by detectives, Dials grabbed a handgun that belonged to Sean Perrin, 31, off the bedroom floor, placing it between the mattress and the wall before the two went to bed, the Dispatch reported. At one point, the boy entered the room, found the gun and accidentally shot himself.

Perrin is facing a weapons charge, ABC6 reported.

Dials, who remains in custody at the Franklin County jail, has a bond set for $50,000, according to the Dispatch.