Virginia mother of 6-year-old who shot teacher Abby Zwerner arrested
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Administrators warned 3 times on the day boy shot teacher at a Virginia elementary school
Diane Toscano, an attorney for Abigail Zwerner, said during a news conference that she has notified the school board in Newport News that the 25-year-old teacher at Richneck Elementary School plans to sue the school district over the Jan. 6 shooting, which left Zwerner with serious injuries. (Jan. 25)
AP
The mother of the 6-year-old boy who shot a teacher at a Virginia elementary school was arrested Thursday, police announced.
The woman was charged with felony child neglect and recklessly leaving a loaded firearm so as to endanger a child, a misdemeanor, and turned herself in to police Thursday, the Newport News Police Department said. Authorities announced the charges Monday.
USA TODAY is not naming the woman in this story to protect the identity of the child.
The felony charge is punishable by up to five years in prison, while the misdemeanor is punishable by up to one year in prison.
The woman was released from custody after posting a $5,000 bond and has her first court hearing Friday, said James Ellenson, her attorney.
What family of 6-year-old boy has said
Ellenson has previously said the woman has no prior criminal record and her gun was secured on a top shelf in her closet with a trigger lock.
The boy has an “acute disability” and was under a care plan that involved a parent accompanying him to class every day, Ellenson said. The week of the shooting was the first when a parent was not with him in class, he said.
6-year-old boy shot, wounded teacher in Virginia elementary school
The arrest comes over three months since the shooting at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, a city near the Chesapeake Bay in southeast Virginia. Police say a 6-year-old boy, who has not been publicly identified, shot and wounded his 25-year-old first-grade teacher Abby Zwerner using his mother’s gun, striking Zwerner in the hand and chest. The gun was purchased legally, authorities said.
Police officials have described the shooting as “intentional” and came without warning.
Zwerner hustled her students out of the classroom while another staff member who heard the gunshot physically restrained the child, police said, calling the teacher a “hero” who may have saved lives. She was then rushed to the hospital with what police initially described as life-threatening injuries. Zwerner was hospitalized for nearly two weeks.
Teacher files lawsuit against school system
Zwerner filed a $40 million lawsuit against the school system last week, accusing school officials of negligence and of ignoring multiple warnings from teachers and staff members that the boy had taken a gun to school.
Zwerner’s attorney, Diane Toscano, told reporters in January that staff had warned administrators three times that the boy had a gun but nothing was done. The 6-year-old boy accused of shooting Zwerner also often cursed at staff members and teachers, chased students while trying to whip them with his belt and once choked another teacher, according to a legal notice filed by Zwerner’s attorney.
The city prosecutor’s office announced Tuesday an investigation into whether the “actions or omissions” of any school employees could lead to criminal charges.
Dig Deeper: More on shooting
Contact Christine Fernando at cfernando@usatoday.com or follow her on Twitter at @christinetfern.