Lawyer: Adminstrators were warned 3 times the day boy shot teacher at Virginia school

[FakeNoose]

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (AP news story)

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Concerned staff warned administrators at a Virginia elementary school three times that a 6-year-old boy had a gun and was threatening other students in the hours before he shot and wounded a teacher, but the administration “was paralyzed by apathy” and didn’t call police, remove the boy from class or lock down the school, the wounded teacher's lawyer said Wednesday.

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 Ms. Zwerner with serious injuries.

“On that day, over the course of a few hours, three different times — three times — school administration was warned by concerned teachers and employees that the boy had a gun on him at the school and was threatening people. But the administration could not be bothered,” Ms. Toscano said.

She said that Ms. Zwerner first went to an administrator at around 11:15 a.m. on the day of the shooting and said the boy had threatened to beat up another child, but no action was taken.

Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2023/01/25/newport-news-virginia-abigail-zwerner-us-shooting-richneck-elementary/stories/202301250086

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- more at link -

Lawsuits are coming. This is total negligence on the school administrators. Also, how negligent are the boy's parents? He got that gun from somewhere - probably his own home.

[Sky Jewels]

1. What.The.Fuck.

[Samrob]

34. Only black children are a threat and disciplined in schools...didn't you know that?

Had the child been black, a swat team would have been dispatched and the kid shot to death.

[sarisataka]

38. Apparently the child is black

But proceed...

[LisaL]

40. Open mouth, insert foot.

NT

[catsudon]

41. by your logic

the kid was giving special treatment? and it was race based?

[Lovie777]

2. And did nothing.........

[GusBob]

3. The article you posted indicates where he got the gun nt

[FakeNoose]

6. Yes it does, and it surely sounds like parental negligence

The parents haven't put out a statement yet, probably on the advice of their attorney.

[GusBob]

11. Yes they can claim locked

but how did the kid get the key

[Ray Bruns]

20. They do make keyless trigger locks with combinations.

He may have gotten the combination or the last person accessing the weapon didn’t spin the numbers if it was keyless.

[ShazzieB]

21. The article says a key was required.

The family's attorney, James Ellenson, told The Associated Press that his understanding was that the gun was in the woman’s closet on a shelf well over 6 feet high and had a trigger lock that required a key.

[Ray Bruns]

25. Then the little bastard stole the key or the gun wasn't secured.

My bad

[GusBob]

12. Yes they can claim locked

but how did the kid get the key

[ShazzieB]

24. According to this, they have put one out, but it doesn't reveal a lot.

https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/newport-news/family-of-6-year-old-accused-of-shooting-teacher-issues-statement/

Probably very carefully worded and closely vetted by their lawyer.

[Aristus]

4. "Oh, nothing to worry about. After all: who brings a gun to school and starts shooting?"

[Paladin]

5. Unforgivable.

I hope Ms. Zwerner's lawsuit earnings are huge.

[thesquanderer]

13. But who pays? Like suing the police. It doesn't come out of the pockets of those responsible.

That's the problem with these suits. Of course they should still file them, and are entitled to what they get, but in the end, it is probably the taxpayers who pay.

for example...

https://kutv.com/news/get-gephardt/following-your-money-21m-paid-to-settle-lawsuits-against-schools-since-2013

[Paladin]

15. Well, golly. I guess we're all just shit out of luck. (nt)

[MichMan]

22. I'm sure criminal charges could be filed like reckless endangerment or something

[NullTuples]

31. And just like police, some other district *will* hire them, maybe even with better pay.

TANJ

[progressoid]

35. Sue the parents too.

[usaf-vet]

29. Like, time to retire without ANY financial worries for a lifetime and beyond for her family?

I sure hope that's at least the starting point.

It strikes me that she is one brave lady. Knowing the threat existed and continuing to do her job.

[IronLionZion]

7. The do nothing plan is clearly not working

it didn't work in Uvalde either.

[Zilli]

16. The do nothing plan totally supports the basic concept though.

GUNS TRUMP LIVES!!! This is the way it has always been and, sadly, it will not change.

[IronLionZion]

17. It's not too much to pull a 6 year old aside and search for guns

these reports need to be taken seriously

[Warpy]

8. I can see this stuff being ignored in middle school, where bullying is at its peak

but this kid was really, really young, and that means really, really disturbed.

Well, the kid will get some help but the cost was far higher than it should have been. The mom was beyond stupid to have a gun in the house with a kid like this one. Had he been reduced to using a kitchen knife, the injury to the teacher would most likely have been far less and with a shorter recovery period and the outcome for the kid would be the same: court ordered therapy, a lot of it, plus removal from the home if the mom is a total space shot and in deep denial.

[NullTuples]

32. You can see ignoring a kid bringing a gun to school? Please explain, I assume I'm reading that wrong

[PatrickforB]

9. So, let's get this straight...

A six-year-old child brings a gun to school.

Staff notice the gun and call it to the attention of the 'school administration,' presumably the Assistant Principal or Principal.

These paragons of the 'Peter Principle' do....................nothing.

And later in the day the kid shoots a teacher.

WHERE THE HELL IS THE COMMON SENSE?

And, sadly, the payouts to these GIANT and justified lawsuits that are coming down will be paid by taxpayers, because K-12 is publicly funded.

So once again, WE ARE FOOTING THE BILL FOR THE EXCESSES OF GUN NUTS AND THE NRA.

[McKim]

19. Plenty of Peter Principals

There were plenty of Peter Principals in the school district where I worked. The alcoholic, the one who stole from the district, the incompetent and the racists. Finally I gave up on ever working for decent people and I quit early.

[NullTuples]

33. That is exactly what Republicans mean when they speak of their "common sense".

Freedom for everyone to do as they please, including carrying guns.

Why bother with age restrictions, right? I mean, even kids (okay, cisgender kids) have a right to make their own choices. It's called, "LIBERTY" and it's what America is all about! /sarcasm

[Lulu KC]

10. "Acute care plan"

I have never heard of this--a child who needed his parents to come to school with them. This is a very serious situation for all concerned.

[ShazzieB]

23. And the week of the shooting was "the first when a parent was not in class with him."

The family also said in its statement that the boy has an “acute disability” and was under a care plan “that included his mother or father attending school with him and accompanying him to class every day.” The week of the shooting was the first when a parent was not in class with him, the family said.

It doesn't say WHY a parent wasn't present. Everything I learn about this story just raises more and more questions!

[NH Ethylene]

37. It sounds like this child was extremely troubled.

He probably should have been placed out of the district, in a special facility, but that is very costly.

[underpants]

14. Unbelievable

Just sad.

[Cha]

18. Unreal how the Admin didn't take

the warnings about the kid having a gun and threatening others, Seriously!

Now we know the parents said the "gun was secure".. only it wasn't.

[ShazzieB]

36. What's even weirder (to me) is that no administrator's names are ever mentioned.

Every article I've read just says "an administrator" or "administrators" was/were told about the gun. That's very vague.

Also, if concerns about this kid having a gun were reported to "administrators" multiple times, it sounds like more than one person was involved. Why all the secrecy about the multiple people who evidently received these reports?

If the police are withholding the identity/ies of the administrator(s) involved and even their job title(s) due to concerns for their personal safety, I think they should say so. Treating such key information like a closely guarded secret with no explanation isn't a good look.

[FakeNoose]

42. They also haven't named the boy or his parents

But the teacher who got shot ... well, her name is all over everything.

[Cha]

44. Oh that's right.. I Hope

the teacher, Abigail Zwerner, gets all the money she deserves for this Negligence by "the admins".

It seems to be well Documented.

[NBachers]

26. It was secure . . then somehow it became unsecure . . then it . . just went off!

[LisaL]

28. The gun was kept on a top shelf of closet in mother's bedroom.

His parents apparently consider that to be secure.
I guess they never heard of a chair that the kid can stand on to reach the top shelf.

[GreenWave]

27. It is not logical that the gun was secured.

The six year old gunman could have fessed up he found the gun out in the open.
This kid should not be allowed in any school unless via Zoom or other remote tool until he is declared free of criminal and murderous intent.
The property tax payers are going to foot the bill for this gunboy. Hopefully some hard time for lackadaisical administrators.

[NullTuples]

30. the administration, "was paralyzed by apathy" equals "DGAF"

Let's not cage this in such passive, excusing language.

The administration didn't care. They didn't want to be bothered with doing their already cushy job. They didn't value the lives of the students and staff.

[BigmanPigman]

39. Wasn't his parent supposed to be by his side at all times

while in the school? I believe that is what I read before. He had severe behavioral issues and this was a requirement. That kid is a danger to everyone at the school. I worked next to a Spec Ed classroom and it wasn't even a "severe" class and the stuff that went on in their would make your mouth drop open. Everything not nailed down became a weapon, including entire desks, and were thrown across the room and the students had to be removed throughout the day. I don't know how they were able to learn anything.

School admin. dropped the ball as well as the parents. You can't let up for a second these days since guns and crazy people are everywhere. The good 'ol USA....

[Evolve Dammit]

43. In-Excusable. Fire them all. No business being employed at a school anymore. nt

[Zeitghost]

45. There has to be more to this

Staff and teachers noticed a six year old threatening kids with a gun and then decided that telling the admins was good enough? Nobody over the course of a few hours saw this happening and came to the conclusion that perhaps law enforcement should be called? Of the gun should be taken from the child? Or that the children being threatened should be removed from the area?

Administrators certainly dropped the ball, but apparently so did multiple other adults.

[Eugene]

46. Schools chief fired after boy, 6, shoots teacher in Virginia

Schools chief fired after boy, 6, shoots teacher in Virginia (BBC)

The superintendent of a school in the US state of Virginia has lost his job after a six-year-old pupil shot and wounded a teacher earlier this month.

The school board decided by a vote of 5-to-1 to terminate George Parker only hours after a lawyer for the teacher announced plans to sue the district.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64406295

______________________________________________________________________

School board votes to cut ties with superintendent weeks after 6-year-old allegedly shot teacher (CNN)

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/25/us/newport-news-virginia-school-board-superintendent-vote/index.html

[FakeNoose]

47. Thank you for posting this - we need the BBC to learn anything, American papers can't tell us