Bucks County Toddler Accidentally Shot Himself With Dad's Unsecured Gun: District Attorney

Authorities have released additional details about an accidental shooting that claimed the life of a 2-year-old Bucks County boy earlier this month.

Benjamin Austin Smith, 2, died from a single gunshot wound on Sept. 12. His father, 26-year-old Nicholas Wyllie, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter, recklessly endangering another person, and endangering the welfare of a child.

Wyllie was arraigned Wednesday and released on $50,000 unsecured bail. He is scheduled for formal arraignment Oct. 28 in Doylestown.

According to information from the Bucks County District Attorney's office, state police were dispatched around 11 a.m. that morning to a home on Kumry Road in Mildford Township for a report that a child had sustained a gunshot wound.

According to a probable cause affidavit, when state police troopers arrived, they found emergency medical services workers tending to Benjamin in the kitchen. He had suffered a single gunshot wound to the chest. He was taken to St. Luke’s Hospital in Quakertown, where he was pronounced dead at 11:40 a.m.

The shooting happened at the child's grandparents' home, where Wylie and his son lived, the District Attorney said.

According to information provided by the District Attorney's office, Wyllie told police that he and Benjamin had been watching television in the living room, when the child decided he was going to his room to watch Winnie the Pooh. About five minutes later, Wyllie told police he heard a loud bang and ran to his bedroom, where he found the boy lying on the floor, bleeding.

Investigators believe the toddler found an unlocked, .45 caliber handgun, loaded with hollow-point ammunition, unsecured in his father’s bedroom, and accidentally shot himself with it.

According to the affidavit, family members say the young boy "loved" guns. His mother, Courtney Hotaling, provided police with photographs of Benjamin holding toy guns, the District Attorney said.

The couple, who did not live together, taught the boy how to use a two-handed grip when holding a toy pistol, according to information from the District Attorney's office.

The boy's grandfather had advised Wyllie to secure his guns because of the boy's interest in them, the District Attorney said.

Bucks County District Attorney Matthew D. Weintraub said that while Wyllie did not intend any harm to his child, “we believe and we will prove that he is nevertheless criminally responsible for his 2-year-old son’s death.”

At least 186 shootings by children have been reported so far in 2016, including this incident, according to the District Attorney.