GLADSTONE, Mo. (AP) - A Gladstone man has been charged with second-degree murder after a 2-year-old boy he was supposed to be supervising found a handgun and shot himself, according to prosecutors.
Christopher Ray Ellis, 30, was indicted by a Clay County grand jury with second-degree murder and first-degree child endangerment charges.
Officers responding to a Gladstone apartment complex on Sept. 24 found the boy suffering from a gunshot wound. Emergency workers administered first aid but the child was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The indictment alleges Ellis failed to supervise the child before he found the gun, The Kansas City Star reported.
Police said at the time of the shooting it appeared the child “found an unsecured handgun in the residence and shot himself.”
Prosecutors requested a $250,000 bond. Online court records do not name an attorney for Ellis.
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