Shooting of Abby Zwerner

On January 6, 2023, American school teacher Abby Zwerner was seriously injured when a six-year-old male student shot her while she was teaching in her classroom at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia. In his backpack, the boy had brought from home a 9mm semi-automatic pistol belonging to his mother.

Shooting of Abby Zwerner
Part of school shootings in the United States
LocationRichneck Elementary School, Newport News, Virginia, U.S.
DateJanuary 6, 2023
c. 2:00 p.m. (EST)
Attack type
School shooting
Weapon9mm Taurus Armas pistol
VictimAbby Zwerner (survived)
Perpetrator6-year-old unnamed male student
MotiveUnknown

Zwerner's shooting provoked conversations about the culpability of young shooters and their parents and comparisons with the 2000 killing of Kayla Rolland, also committed by a six-year-old student.

Background

The shooting was the first U.S. school shooting of 2023,[1] but the third incident of gun violence in Newport News Public School district in seventeen months.[2] The shooting is one of sixteen U.S. school shootings perpetrated by shooters under the age of ten years since 1970.[3] Richneck Elementary School is an elementary school in Newport News with 550 students. The school was equipped with metal detectors at the time of the shooting, which were randomly used to screen students.[4]

Reports about the student's previous conduct included behavioral issues at school: cursing staff, trying to whip students with his belt, and choking a teacher. In 2021, the student allegedly came from behind his teacher, locked his forearms around her neck, and pulled her backward; he was subsequently moved to a different school. In the week before the shooting, the student reportedly slammed Zwerner's cell phone and broke it, resulting in a one-day suspension, with his first day back being the day of the shooting.[5][6]

Before the shooting, multiple staff members, including Zwerner, told school administrators about the student's conduct and concerns that he may have a weapon on him. Zwerner first alerted school officials between 11:15 and 11:30 am, stating that the student had threatened to beat up another student. A second teacher went to a school administrator at 12:30 pm, saying the teacher had taken it upon herself to search the student's backpack. A third teacher told administrators shortly before 1:00 pm that the student had shown another student at recess he had a gun and threatened the child that he would shoot them if they reported it. Reportedly the teacher was told to "wait out the situation" as "the school day was almost over," while another school employee was denied permission to search the student and his belongings. About an hour before she was shot, Zwerner also reportedly texted an unidentified individual that the student claimed to have a gun and that administrators were not helping.[7][8]

Shooting

During a routine lesson,[9] at approximately 2 p.m. local time on January 6, 2023,[10] a six-year-old male student pointed a 9mm Taurus pistol at Zwerner and then shot at her when she tried to reach out for the weapon. The bullet first passed through her hand and then lodged in her chest.[11][12] Police reported that the shooting was intentional.[10] Police report that there was no struggle or warning given before the student discharged the gun.[13] The child's mother legally owned the gun[10] that the student brought to the school in his backpack.[14]

Immediately after being shot, Zwerner escorted all of her students out of the classroom and away from the shooter[15] while another staff member, according to police, restrained the shooter until police took him into juvenile detention.[13]

Victim

Abigail Zwerner[12] is a 25-year-old first grade[2] school teacher, employed at Richneck Elementary School.[1][16] Zwerner's injuries were initially described as life-threatening, although her condition improved and she was described as "stable" on January 8, 2023,[17] and released from the hospital in mid-January 2023.[18]

Aftermath

Richneck Elementary School remained closed during the subsequent week.[4] The school announced that Principal Briana Foster Newton had left the position shortly before the school re-opened on January 30. Additionally, school assistant principal Dr. Ebony Parker resigned before the school re-opened, and the school district superintendent George Parker III was voted out effective February 1. The school re-opened with additional safety measures in the form of two permanent school division security officers, two metal detectors, doors installed in previously open areas, and all students receiving clear backpacks.[19]

The child shooter was arrested and remained in a healthcare facility as of January 13, 2023. Because of his very young age, the child could not be identified.[8] On January 13, police stated they did not know about the tip that the shooter was armed before the shooting.[20]

The shooting sparked conversations about the legal culpability of very young children and comparisons to the February 29, 2000 killing of Kayla Rolland when a six-year-old boy fatally shot Rolland at Buell Elementary School in Mount Morris Township, Michigan.[21] The boy was not charged with murder due to his age, though his uncle was convicted of manslaughter.[21] In an NBC News opinion piece, a clinical psychologist emphasized the limitations of children's moral development and cognition of events and called for compassion to be extended to the shooter and for the provision of care and rehabilitation, as opposed to incarceration.[22]

On January 25, Zwerner's attorney, Diane Toscano, stated that they intended to file a lawsuit regarding multiple failures by the administration to respond to concerns that the student had a gun on the school campus.[19] Zwerner subsequently started litigation against the Newport News School Board and three former school district officials,[23] seeking damages of $40 million.[24]

On April 10, 2023, NBC News published the name of the shooter's mother, and said that she had been indicted by a grand jury on charges of felony child neglect and a misdemeanor count of recklessly leaving a loaded firearm so as to endanger a child.[25]

Responses

Newport News mayor Phillip Jones described the shooting as "a red flag for our country", also saying, "I do think that after this event, there is going to be a nationwide discussion on how these sorts of things can be prevented."[1] Professor and gun violence expert Daniel Webster of Johns Hopkins University stated that gun violence by children was increasing in frequency.[1]

The American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten called for government action to prevent guns from being taken into schools: "When will the shock of gunshots in school be enough to inspire the action necessary to prevent guns in schools and the shattering of lives it causes?"[3] Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence lawyer Allison Anderman criticized Virginia for not having laws requiring guns to be securely stored.[3] Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin shared his belief that Virginia had "some of the toughest gun laws in the nation" and spoke of a need for harsher criminal sentencing and improved mental health care.[3] The Uvalde Foundation For Kids, formed after the Uvalde, Texas mass school shooting; also issued a statement following the shooting stating, "Today’s Incident Highlights, yet again, The Need To Prioritize In This Nation, The Protection Of Our Schools, Our Students & The Communities Who Care For Them."

Later in January, the parents of the six-year-old shooter released an anonymized statement via their attorney that stated that he had an acute disability.[26]

Similar events

On February 16, 2023, another six-year-old child took a gun to a school in Virginia.[27] The mother of a child in the school claimed that the boy threatened to shoot her daughter. The boy's mother was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor and allowing access to a loaded firearm by children.[27]

See also

References
  1. Helmore, Edward (January 8, 2023). "Virginia shooting of teacher by six-year-old 'not accidental', authorities say". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 8, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  2. Alsharif, Mirna; Romero, Dennis; Chirbas, Kurt. "Virginia school district where 6-year-old allegedly shot teacher has had 3 school-related shootings in 17 months". NBCNews.com. Archived from the original on January 8, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  3. Bibeau, Paul; Mervosh, Sarah; Arango, Tim (January 8, 2023). "After 6-Year-Old Is Accused in School Shooting, Many Questions and a Murky Legal Path". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 9, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  4. "Abby Zwerner: US school where six-year-old shot teacher shut all week". BBC News. January 9, 2023. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  5. Drenon, Brandon (February 7, 2023). "Six-year-old who shot his teacher allegedly assaulted another". BBC News. Archived from the original on February 7, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
  6. "Boy who shot Richneck Elem. teacher allegedly tried to choke another". CBS 6 News Richmond WTVR. February 6, 2023. Archived from the original on February 7, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
  7. Ortiz, Erik; Planas, Antonio (January 25, 2023). "Teacher shot by 6-year-old texted a dire warning to a loved one before she was wounded, source says". NBC News. Archived from the original on January 29, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  8. Halpert, Madeline (January 13, 2023). "Newport News: Staff was alerted six-year-old may have had a weapon". BBC News. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  9. Bibeau, Paul; Mervosh, Sarah; Robertson, Campbell (January 9, 2023). "6-Year-Old Brought Gun From Home in Newport News School Shooting, Police Say". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  10. "Abby Zwerner: Six-year-old who shot his teacher used mother's gun". BBC News. January 9, 2023. Archived from the original on January 9, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  11. Salam, Erum (January 9, 2023). "Virginia teacher who was shot by six-year-old tried to confiscate gun – report". TheGuardian.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  12. "Abby Zwerner: Six-year-old who shot his teacher brought gun from home". BBC News. January 9, 2023. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  13. Finley, Ben; Lavoie, Denise (January 10, 2023). "Six-year-old shot Virginia teacher during a class lesson, police chief says". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on January 14, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  14. Jouvenal, Justin; Natanson, Hannah; Morrison, Jim. "6-year-old who allegedly shot Va. teacher used gun legally purchased by mom, police say". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on January 20, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  15. Planas, Antonio. "Virginia teacher who was shot by 6-year-old students to safety". NBCNews.com. Archived from the original on January 10, 2023. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  16. Murphy, Matt (January 8, 2023). "Newport News: Condition of teacher shot by child improving". BBC News. Archived from the original on January 8, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  17. Hurley, Bevan (January 8, 2023). "Teacher shot by 6-year-old hailed a hero for helping pupils flee". The Independent. Archived from the original on January 8, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  18. Watson, Michelle; Todd, Brian; Almasy, Steve (January 19, 2023). "Teacher allegedly shot by 6-year-old released from the hospital as child's family sends condolences, says the gun was secured". CNN. Archived from the original on January 21, 2023. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  19. Lenthang, Marlene (January 30, 2023). "Principal at Virginia school where 6-year-old shot teacher removed as students return to class". MSN. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  20. "Six-year-old Virginia boy's backpack was searched before he shot his teacher". The Guardian. January 13, 2023. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  21. Epstein, Keyla (January 10, 2023). "Newport News: What happens to a six-year-old who shoots someone?". BBC News. Archived from the original on January 10, 2023. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  22. Cook, Joan M. (January 11, 2023). "Opinion | The 6-year-old accused of shooting his teacher shouldn't be punished under the law". NBC News. Archived from the original on January 21, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  23. "Newport News School Board's attorneys file motion to dismiss Abby Zwerner's lawsuit over Richneck shooting". 13newsnow.com. April 26, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  24. AP (April 3, 2023). "Virginia teacher shot by a 6-year-old student files a $40 million lawsuit". NPR. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  25. Grand jury indicts the mother of a 6-year-old boy who shot his Virginia teacher, NBC News, April 10, 2023, Archive
  26. Watson, Michelle; Todd, Brian; Almasy, Steve (January 19, 2023). "Teacher allegedly shot by 6-year-old released from hospital as child's family sends condolences, says gun was secured". CNN. Archived from the original on January 21, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
  27. "Another six-year-old boy brings gun to school in Virginia". BBC News. February 18, 2023. Archived from the original on February 18, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
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