Trace Adkins has spoken about the life-threatening moment he was shot at close range by his former wife.
During an appearance on This Past Weekend with Theo Von, the country singer reflected on the incident while discussing his personal life, including the fact that he has been married four times.
The shooting took place on February 21, 1994, during an argument with his second wife, Julie Curtis, whom he had married in 1991. According to reports, the confrontation stemmed from his excessive drinking. Adkins explained that an argument escalated after he refused to leave when he was told to go.
“She was mad. Wanted me to leave, and I wasn’t going to leave, so that’s how it went down. She put it under my left arm and the bullet came out under my right arm.”
He said he had tried to calm the situation by moving toward her carefully and asking her to lower the weapon, but she fired anyway.
Theo Von then asked what being shot actually felt like, and Adkins said the shock of the moment took over.
“When the situation is that serious, your body protects you – you just go into shock.”
According to Adkins, his memory of the immediate aftermath is limited.
“The doctor said the only reason I survived was cause the bullet went through as point-blank velocity at muzzle velocity.
“So it didn’t have time to mushroom. It was just muzzle velocity, so it went straight through.”
He said the wound was effectively a “kill-shot,” underlining how narrowly he escaped death. The bullet pierced his heart and both lungs, requiring emergency open-heart surgery. In his 2007 autobiography, “A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions from a Freethinking Roughneck,” Adkins recalled that doctors held little hope for his survival and told his family and friends to say goodbye.
Data from the National Library of Medicine shows that roughly 60 to 70 percent of people in the United States survive gunshot injuries. Outcomes can vary significantly depending on whether the shooting was intentional, where the victim was hit, and how quickly trauma treatment is available.
Estimates also suggest that around 327 people are shot each day across the US, with about 117 dying and 210 surviving.
Despite what happened, Adkins chose not to pursue charges against his ex-wife. He later reflected that “it wasn’t my time to go,” noting that the experience required ongoing medical attention. Adkins continues to undergo periodic heart checkups as a result of the injury.
When Theo Von asked whether he believed she had meant to kill him, Adkins said he did not think that was the case.
“I don’t think she even had any idea what that gun was going to do, I’d never seen her hold a gun, I’d never seen her shoot a gun,” he added.
“I knew she had one, but I’d never seen her use it. I had a bunch of guns, still have a bunch of guns, and I shoot them pretty often, but I’d never seen her do that and I just don’t think she knew what was about to happen when she pulled that trigger. She thought it was a toy.”
The woman involved was Julie Curtis, Adkins’ second wife. The shooting took place in 1994, and the pair separated later that same year, divorcing before the end of 1994.
Before Curtis, Adkins had been married to Barbara Lewis from 1982 to 1990. After Curtis, he married Rhonda Forlaw in 1997, remaining married to her for 16 years before separating in 2014. Adkins has a total of five daughters from his marriages. He is now married to Canadian actress Victoria Pratt, whom he wed on October 12, 2019. Today, at 64 years old, Adkins continues his country music career, which began with his 1996 debut album “Dreamin’ Out Loud” and has included numerous chart-topping hits throughout his three-decade-long career.