Left: Nathan Stanley. Right: Mikayla Stanley (Wabash County Jail via WANE). Inset: Charlie Stanley (McKee Mortuary Inc.).
“Oh, a flashlight.”
Those were the tragic last words of a 4-year-old Indiana boy who died after he grabbed a gun left unsecured on a bedside table by his father before it fired and killed him.
Now the father, 27-year-old Nathan Stanley, is headed to prison for two decades after he pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent in the death of Charlie Stanley, court records say. A judge on Friday sentenced Stanley to 23 years in prison with three years suspended, court records show.
Charlie”s mother, Mikayla Stanley, 26, also is charged with neglect of a dependent and is scheduled to go on trial next month.
According to a press release sent to Fort Wayne CBS affiliate WANE, the incident occurred on May 30, 2025, at an apartment complex on Clear Creek Trail in North Manchester. Cops responded to the apartment and found Charlie suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead on scene.
A probable cause arrest affidavit obtained by local ABC affiliate WPTA said a family member was watching Charlie and his younger brother while the Stanleys were out.
The family member was changing the younger brother’s diaper while Charlie played with items on a bedside table. Unbeknownst to the family member, one of the items was a gun.
She heard him say “Oh, a flashlight” and turned to see what he was holding. The gun went off, striking him in the torso, the affidavit reportedly said.
Charlie’s parents arrived at the home around the same time. Mikayla instantly suspected the shooting involved one of her husband’s guns, saying he was “always leaving them out.” The gun used was a Canik 9mm.
Nathan Stanley reportedly told cops he had gone shooting five days before his son’s death and left the 9mm along with two other handguns, a shotgun and a rifle outside a safe. This was despite agreeing to a child safety plan from the Department of Child Services about the importance of securing weapons inside the house.
Mikayla Stanley said she was “always getting onto Nathan about locking his guns up,” the affidavit reportedly stated.
Charlie’s obituary described him as a “bright, charming child” who “delighted his family and all who knew him.”
“One of his favorite things was ‘reading’ picture books to his little brother,” the obituary said.
