On the first Friday of 2023, teacher Abby Zwerner (25) was shot by a six-year-old student at the elementary school where she works in Newport News in Virginia, USA.
Zwerner was in a life-threatening condition when she was taken to the hospital.
An hour before the shooting, she sent a text message to a close person, in which she told them that the six-year-old had a firearm in his backpack and that the school management would not do anything, writes NBC News.
– She was frustrated because she tried to help with this child, for this child, and when she was the one who needed help, no one came, says the person who received the text message from Zwerner.
Several asked the management to intervene
Diane Toscano, Abby Zwerner’s attorney, says during a press conference Wednesday that three teachers and a fourth employee went to the school administration and asked them to do something earlier that day.
Zwerner asked for help with the six-year-old between 11.15 and 11.40. Another teacher went to the school management at 12:30 and said that she herself wanted to examine his backpack.
A third teacher informed school management shortly before 1pm that the boy had shown the firearm to another student during recess and that he had “threatened to shoot him if he told anyone”.
A fourth employee asked the school management for permission to search the boy and was refused, says Toscano.
– The school management asked the employee to “wait out the situation because the school day was almost over”, says Toscano.
On Wednesday evening, the school management held an emergency meeting where they dismissed the school’s inspector, reports the Reuters news agency. He was dismissed without giving a reason.
Loved by the students
During an argument with Zwerner at around 2 p.m., the six-year-old took out the firearm and shot the 25-year-old teacher. The bullet first went through her hand and then hit Zwerner in the chest.
SUPPORT THE TEACHER: Students at Richneck Elementary School gathered to light a candle for Abby Zwerner after she was shot. Photo: John C. Clark / AP / NTB
– Even after she had been shot, she thought about the safety of the other children. She shouted that they had to run away, says Sebastian Gonzalez-Hernandez, the father of one of her other students, to Daily Mail.
– She is a fantastic teacher. So dedicated. My son loves her and we are devastated by what has happened. We are thinking of her and hope that she will recover soon, he adds.
Another parent writes on Facebook that her son called when it happened and that she could hear him and the other children crying.
– I think she actually saved lives, because I don’t know what would have happened if these kids had stayed in the classroom, police chief Steve Drew said after the incident.
Going to court
Diane Toscano says she plans to sue the elementary school on Zwerner’s behalf.
– This tragedy could have been avoided if management had intervened when they learned of the immediate danger. Instead, they failed to do anything, and Abby was shot, says the lawyer.
According to NBC News, school spokeswoman Michelle Price says that “everything that has been reported to the school administration is part of the investigation.”
According to Toscano, Zwerner has been discharged from the hospital, but the bullet is still in a dangerous place in his body. She has several operations to come.
– The road back will be long, and even if her physical condition improves, the psychological wounds will still be fresh, believes Toscano.
“The weapon was secured”
The six-year-old’s parents stated last week that the firearm “was secured” when the boy took it from home, without specifying what was in the “secured”.
The weapon was purchased legally by the boy’s mother.
The parents say in a press release that their son has learning difficulties.
“Our hearts go out to our son’s teacher and we pray for her recovery after such an incomprehensible tragedy, after she selflessly helped our son and the children at school. She has worked tirelessly and wholeheartedly to support our family, while we have sought the best learning environment for our son,” the parents said in the press release.
