Man pleads guilty to manslaughter after 3-year-old shoots self in head

A Minneapolis man has entered a guilty plea petition for a manslaughter charge that stems from the death of a 3-year-old last October.

Court records show that 31-year-old Elliot Staples III entered the plea on one count of second-degree manslaughter Wednesday.

RELATED: Gun owner charged with manslaughter after 3-year-old shoots self in head

Prosecutors say Staples left a gun out on his kitchen island on Oct. 21 and then went to the bathroom.

While he was in the other room, 3-year-old JaJuan Robinson Jr. found the gun and fatally shot himself in the head.

Charging documents note that Staples told police he “usually puts the gun on top of the refrigerator” but didn’t this time “because he was rushed.”

His plea agreement calls for a sentence of one year in the county workhouse while a four-year prison sentence would be stayed for five years.

Staples is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 1.
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