Lewis, 17, was arrested March 23. He was accused of shooting Cole W. Aydelotte, 16, of West River Road, Grand Island, in the head with his father's revolver in his family's River Road home.

The guilty plea was entered after Lewis, in a tearful, quavery voice, told the judge what happened.

"I got the gun from my dad's closet. . . . I was playing around with it. . . . I had it in my hand. I held it out and pointed it and pulled the trigger, and it went off. And I shot my friend," Lewis said.

When Broderick asked if they were playing Russian roulette, Lewis, almost crying, said, "Yes, sir."

He also told the judge that he and Cole were not fighting or on bad terms when the incident occurred.

Broderick accepted the plea after telling Lewis his sentence could range from five to 15 years in state prison. He also reminded the teen that he was waiving his rights to appeal his sentence under the terms of an agreement with the Niagara County district attorney's office.