JACKSONVILLE, Texas — One East Texas teen is recovering after being accidentally shot in the stomach by a friend earlier this month in Cherokee County.

Ezekiel Kirkpatrick was at a friend’s house when a gun believed to be unloaded went off, hitting him in the stomach. After emergency surgery in Dallas, he survived against the odds — and now, he and his mom are urging others to take gun safety more seriously.

“He barely touched the trigger, just like that it instantly went off,” Kirkpatrick said. “I just heard a big flash, the smell of gunpowder, and I was on the ground. I turned around and was bleeding.”

His mom, Janita White, was in Jacksonville when paramedics called to say he was being airlifted to Dallas for emergency surgery.

“They told me that he was alert, but it wasn't lookin

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