HOT PURSUIT

A sad case involving a Steele County family has captured state and national headlines in recent weeks.
It involves Cory Neal Stucky, 30, who has work connections in Dodge County, and his nearly 2-month-old baby. Back in July, the baby died while being cared for by Stucky in their Blooming Prairie home. 
At about 1 a.m., the baby started crying and the mother held him. At one point, Stucky got up and took the child aggressively stating that it was his weekend to get up with him. 
On the morning hours of July 18, the child’s mother, Amy Solland, found the child lying face down by Stucky’s right arm. When she noted the baby was cold to the touch and not breathing, she immediately began to cry and scream, called 911 and started CPR.
Stucky has since been charged with second-degree manslaughter and child endangerment. He is accused of drinking at least 24 beers on the day prior to the child’s death. Neighbors described Stucky as being “tanked” throughout the day. The medical examiner ruled that the baby died of asphyxia.
As you can imagine, the child’s mother is struggling to come to grips with what has happened. “I’m broken,” Solland told me this week. “Unless you’ve been there, you can’t imagine what either of us are going through.”
Solland hopes something positive can come out of this tragedy. She wants the court to get help for Stucky, who she characterizes as a “heavy drinker.” She says Stucky simply can’t live without alcohol.
Said Solland, “I hope he gets help. He needs to curb a 12-year addiction (of alcohol). He needs a lot of help.”
She has expressed her own hopelessness in getting Stucky the help he needs. Solland said she has tried for the past year and a half to get him help, but she’s been unsuccessful. In addition to help with chemical dependency, Stucky also needs anger management courses as well as parenting classes, Solland maintains.