6-year-old accused of shooting teacher in Virginia has ‘acute disability’, family says
The 6-year-old boy who is accused of bringing a gun and shooting his teacher in Newport News, Va., this month had “acute disabilities” and was under an intensive care plan at the school, his family said Jan. In his first statement on Thursday after the shooting.
The statement, released through the family’s attorney, said the boy went to school every day with his mother or father as part of his disability plan, and the week of the shooting was the first time a parent had been with him. Not in class.
“We will regret our absence on this day for the rest of our lives,” the family said in a statement.
The statement also said that the gun that authorities said the boy had brought from the home was “secured”, but did not say how the boy had gained access to it.
Police declined to comment. A spokeswoman for the Newport News Police Department said Thursday that no one has yet been charged in the matter. The Newport News School District declined to comment, citing student privacy.
The new detail adds context to a harrowing case in which police say a 6-year-old obtained a handgun at home, brought it to Richneck Elementary School and pulled the trigger in her first-grade classroom, seriously injuring her teacher, Abigail Zwerner. Wounded from , 25.
The child’s history also raises questions about the school’s response on the day of the shooting, when district officials say an employee at Richneck Elementary searched the boy’s backpack while acting on a tip. The school district said no weapon was found at that time. Later, around 2 p.m., police said, the boy picked up a pistol in his first grade classroom and fired a shot at his teacher.
The case was unusual because of the young age of the child, in an era of rising school shootings, sparking new conversations about school safety and access to guns. Richneck Elementary has been closed since the shooting, and the school district announced it would install metal detectors in all school buildings, including elementary schools.
In the statement, the family said it was committed to “responsible gun ownership and keeping firearms out of reach of children”.
Police have said that the handgun was legally purchased by the child’s mother. Virginia law prohibits leaving a loaded firearm where it is accessible to children under 14, a crime punishable as a misdemeanor.
“Our hearts go out to our son’s teacher and we pray for his recovery,” the boy’s family said in the statement. Our sons.”
His family said the boy is “under hospital care and receiving the treatment he needs”.
“We continue to pray for her teacher’s full recovery and for her loved ones who are undoubtedly distressed and concerned,” the family said. “Also, we love our son and are asking that you please keep him and our family in your prayers.”
Paul Bibeau contributed reporting.