NOS News•
The mother of the 6-year-old boy who shot his primary school teacher in Virginia earlier this year is being prosecuted. The 25-year-old woman is charged with child neglect and recklessly leaving a loaded firearm behind.
Those two offenses carry a combined maximum prison sentence of six years. The mother’s lawyer says the gun was in a closet, on a shelf higher than 6 feet (1.8 meters). The weapon would also have been under lock and key.
Warnings ignored
Abigail Zwerner, 25, was seriously injured in the shooting incident on January 6. She came under fire as she sat at a reading table and was hit in the chest and hand. She managed to get her students to safety before she was taken to the hospital. She had to stay there for two weeks and was operated on four times.
Shortly before the shooting incident, the school management was warned that the boy had brought a weapon to school and that he was in a “violent” mood. Despite this, it was decided to await the situation, as school was almost out. Zwerner has taken the lead to court for negligence.
Prosecutor Howard Gwynn of the City of Newport News decided not to prosecute the boy last month, saying a child his age is incapable of understanding the legal system. At the time, he did not rule out that others would be charged. Even after the indictment against the boy’s mother, Gwynn does not rule out that more people will be prosecuted.
