INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis mother is facing neglect charges after an accidental shooting that left her 7-year-old daughter injured in November 2025.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department arrested 36-year-old Alysha Gulley on Tuesday.
According to court documents, police responded to a home on West 35th Street on November 16 after reports of a child being shot.
Dispatches allegedly received information about a drive-by shooting involving a juvenile in a blue van.
Documents revealed Gulley arrived at the scene in a blue Honda minivan. Her injured daughter was inside the vehicle with a gunshot injuries. She was transported to Riley Hospital in stable condition.
During the investigation, police discovered Gulley owned a firearm kept in a backpack inside her vehicle. Detectives obtained a search warrant for the van and found a loaded 9mm handgun in an unzipped backpack on the vehicle's floor. The weapon contained 15 live rounds and had a fired cartridge casing stuck in the chamber, according to court documents.
Police said this type of malfunction commonly occurs during accidental discharges when a firearm is mishandled or obstructed. Police also found multiple bullet holes inside the van.
According to court documents, the 7-year-old child told detectives at Riley Hospital that the shooting was accidental and happened inside her mother's vehicle.
The girl reportedly told a Department of Child Services worker that she was searching for her mother's vape in the backpack when she touched something hard. The bag "went boom" and shot her, she said according to court documents.
The child said she didn't know there was a gun in the bag or the car.
This marked the second firearm incident involving Gulley's children within a week. On November 12, Gulley's 6-year-old son brought a gun to IPS School #42 to "show friends." School officials recovered the gun, document stated.
Gulley told the school the gun belonged to her 18-year-old son, who kept it in his bedroom backpack but not secured in a gun safe.
Gulley faces four felony neglect of a dependent charges. She was booked into the Marion County Jail with an initial hearing scheduled for April 17.
