Plankinton Teen Accused of Shooting Friend Pleads Guilty

ALEXANDRIA, S.D. (AP) — A South Dakota teenager accused of accidentally shooting and wounding his friend with a handgun he got as a high school graduation present has pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault.

The Daily Republic newspaper reports that prosecutors in return have dropped other charges against 18-year-old Logan Evans of Plankinton, including reckless discharge of a weapon. Judge Tim Bjorkman ordered a presentence investigation.

Authorities say Evans pointed a 9 mm pistol at 17-year-old Nick Lawson on June 22 and pulled the trigger as a joke, thinking the gun was unloaded. It wasn't, and a bullet hit Lawson in the chest. He had surgery at a Sioux Falls hospital and was released in early July to continue his recovery at home.

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