A Wyoming mother is accusing of fleeing to New Mexico and fatally shooting her 11-month-old son so that her ex-boyfriend and the father of the child would get his custody.
Madaline Daly, 35, stands charged with first-degree murder and abandonment of a child resulting in death, according to Grant County jail records. She was arrested on Dec. 23 and remains in jail.
Madaline Daly was in a Relationship with the Child's Father Before She Went on the Run and Tried to Keep the Baby's Birth a Secret
According to a GoFundMe posted on behalf of the child's father, Jake Stoner, the death of Basil Daly was the tragic end of a nearly yearlong tale. Stoner and Daly were in a relationship until July 2024, when "Madeline Daly went on the run and tried to keep the location of where she was and where the baby was going to be born a secret," the fundraiser said.
In months leading up to Basil's birth on Jan. 8, 2025, Daly would allegedly "randomly send text messages to Mr. Stoner, telling him how he would never be a part of his child's life." She settled down in "the small town of Ten Sleep, Wyoming, to finish her pregnancy" and Stoner managed to reconcile with her and "was able to be present for the birth of his son."
Stoner Took Legal Action Against Daly After She Refused to Allow Him to Be a Part of His Son's Life
The relationship between the couple turned sour again. Daly allegedly "refused to discuss the name of the child or even allow for the last name of Stoner to be placed on the birth certificate." She "refused" to allow him to be in his son's life, prompting Stoner to take the dispute to court.
Following a trial in Washakie County, Wyoming, last fall, Stoner was given shared custody of Basil. Things were going fine initially and his first few visits "went wonderfully" but again, Daly allegedly started declining him access to their son.
Stoner appealed to the courts, and he allegedly received a text message from Daly "calling him a deadbeat dad, telling him that she was already having his son start calling someone else daddy." When Daly failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing concerning visitation in October, Stoner was given temporary emergency custody. The father would never see Basil again.
Daly Fled to Wyoming and Then to New Mexico with the Child, Fatally Shot Her Son as Authorities Closed in on Her
The suspect is believed to have fled — first west to Worland, Wyoming, and then south through Colorado into New Mexico. Stoner also hired a private investigator to help find his son. A warrant was placed for Daly's arrest, but, according to the fundraiser, because authorities cited no evidence of "immediate, present danger to the child," an Amber Alert was not issued.
Someone contacted law enforcement and told them Daly was staying in an RV park near Silver City, New Mexico, per Cowboy State Daily. On Dec. 23, 2025, deputies with the Grant County Sheriff's Office responded, and the suspect allegedly hid with her son in an RV near the bunkhouse where she had been living.
As deputies tried to negotiate with the mother, she is said to have taken a 9 mm gun, pointed it at her son's face, and fired. Law enforcement subsequently detained her.
Daly was adamant about keeping her son away from Stoner and his family, according to court documents. She alleged that Basil would have been in danger if "she would have stepped out of that trailer" and that Stoner "never wanted anything to do with Basil, financially, physically, emotionally ever."
Daly has reportedly been ordered to be held in custody as her case moves through the court system. Mark Abramson with the Grant County District Attorney's Office warned that the risk of her fleeing was too high given that she had already done it.
