Charges: After 24 beers, sleeping dad suffocates his baby boy in S. Minn. home

After drinking two dozen beers on a summer's day and then heading to a bar, a southern Minnesota man fell asleep on a couch and suffocated his 8-week-old son, according to felony charges.

Cory N. Stucky, 30, of Blooming Prairie, was charged last week in Steele County District Court with second-degree manslaughter and child endangerment. Stucky was booked into jail and later released on his own recognizance ahead of a court appearance Monday.

Myles Stucky, who was born five weeks' premature to Stucky and Amy J. Solland, was found dead on July 18 by his mother, who discovered the baby facedown on the couch under Stucky's arm, according to the criminal complaint.

Solland called 911 and started resuscitation efforts on Myles, the complaint said. Autopsy results found that Myles died from asphyxiation.

Solland said Tuesday that the charges against her ex-boyfriend "are not a thing of satisfaction with me. He's got an alcohol problem. It's a 12-year problem that led to the death of our child."

She said her hope is that prosecution of the case will eventually lead to Stucky getting sober.

"He needs to stop drinking," Solland told the Star Tribune.

Since she and Stucky split up, she's been making occasional trips to see his two other children in Iowa, where they live with their mother.

"It's the only thing that makes me feel better," Solland said.

A telephone message left Tuesday with Stucky was not returned.

According to the criminal complaint:

An officer responding to the 911 call was told by Stucky at the scene that he had fallen asleep on the couch with Myles on his chest. He said he awoke to the baby's mother screaming that Myles was not breathing.

Stucky at first denied to a coroner's investigator that he had been drinking, but said two days later that he drank 10 beers before lying down with his baby.

A few months later, Solland told authorities that she and Stucky were hosting neighbors for a swim on the previous day. Stucky started drinking around 11 a.m. and downed 24 beers by nightfall.

She said Stucky then joined others at a bar for more drinks, returning around midnight and falling when his daughter tried to hug him. A neighbor who was with Stucky described him as "tanked."

The next morning, Solland saw Stucky on the couch, his face toward the back. She spotted one of Myles' legs. Myles was facedown as she moved Stucky's arm off the boy's head.

After returning home from the hospital where Myles was taken, Solland said Stucky was cleaning up beer bottles.

In an effort to offset funeral expenses for Myles, a GoFundMe page has been established at https://www.gofundme.com/zsjc7yk. As of Tuesday evening, it had received more than $2,500 in pledges toward a goal of $5,000.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482