A Minneapolis teenager who accidentally shot his 2-month-old nephew last month was sentenced Monday to a year and a day in prison.

James Devone Early, 17, pleaded guilty in Hennepin County District Court to a single felony count of reckless discharge of a firearm and was sentenced immediately. He could be eligible for supervised release in fewer than seven months.

Early was charged as an adult following the Sept. 5 shooting in the 2400 block of Emerson Avenue N. that left Isaac Early Jr. seriously injured with a bullet lodged in his neck. The baby spent a month in Hennepin County Medical Center.

Family members initially told police that the child was hit by random gunfire as his father held him outside the home. They later admitted that the uncle had shot him when the gun accidentally went off inside the home after the baby's father had taken the gun from him. A few minutes later, Early snapped the gun shut and it went off.

Early ran from the house, saying, "I didn't shoot your baby, cuz. I'm sorry, cuz," according to charges. He turned himself in five days later.

ABBY SIMONS