The family of the student who was shot Tuesday outside of a Boston school spoke with NBC10 Boston about the teen's condition and called for an end to violence.
The shooting in the parking lot of TechBoston Academy in Dorchester left the student and a teacher injured.
"He's a good kid," said the 17-year-old victim's cousin. "Everybody loves him. This did not need to happen."
To protect the identity of the teenage victim, NBC10 Boston decided to not share his cousin's name.
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"He got shot in the leg," said the cousin. "I'm grateful that he's OK, because we know that the leg can be deadly."
She's upset her family is facing yet another incident of gun violence after losing a family member in an unsolved murder case five years ago in Dorchester.
"I'm pleading to the people to stop this," she said. "Stop causing so much hurt, so much pain, so much agony to the family members of not only the victims, but to your own family members."
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The other victim in Tuesday's shooting was identified by the Boston Teachers Union as 31-year-old Khelmon Bethel, a history teacher at the Dorchester high school.
He and the 17-year-old student athlete were joining a group on a fan bus to catch a basketball game Tuesday at around 5:30 p.m. before gunshots rang out.
"It was pretty crazy how he was just supervising and he got shot for basically doing that," said Isiah Craig, a student at TechBoston Academy.
"I was horrified. I was like 'Wow,'" said TJ Martin, who plays football with the teen victim.
Moments after the shooting, police arrived to the school and began canvassing the area in search of a suspect and a motive, neither of which police have announced.
In the meantime, the teen's family hopes the star athlete can recover quickly and return to doing what he loves most.
"We're praying that he will overcome that. That there will be no long-term issues and that he can continue to be a great sportsman and just doing what he loves," his cousin said.
Both the teenager and the teacher are expected to make a full recovery.
Classes are set to resume Thursday at TechBoston Academy, where counseling services will continue to be provided to students and staff.
