ORLANDO, Fla. (
WFTV) -- A 16-year-old boy was accidentally shot while playing basketball and his family told WFTV he was paralyzed as a result.
Orlando authorities said Mario Whitehead was playing basketball at Willie Mays Park in Richmond Heights when a shot was fired.
Mario's brother, Marvin Giles said, "They heard a shot and he hit the ground. They had to tell me over and over again, 'Your brother just got shot.' I had to run out there as fast as I could."
Police said another teen playing basketball, Takim Neal, went to check on a gun he had in his waistband when it accidentally fired, striking Whitehead in the shoulder.
A report states that a witness identified Neal as the shooter.
Neal, 17, was taken into custody for questioning, and was later arrested, according to the report.
Family members said the bullet somehow became lodged in Whitehead's spine, paralyzing him.
"He comes out here everyday and plays basketball. Good kid. Goes to school," said Whitehead's aunt Rosalyn Smith.
Neal was arrested on charges of carrying a concealed firearm, improper exhibition of a dangerous firearm, discharging firearm in public, possession of a firearm by a minor and culpable negligence, causing injury.
