• News
  • Life
  • TV & Film
  • Beauty
  • Style
  • Home
  • News
    • Celebrity
    • Entertainment
    • Politics
    • Royal Family
  • Life
    • Animals
    • Food & Drink
    • Women's Health
    • Mental Health
    • Sex & Relationships
    • Travel
    • Real Life
  • TV & Film
    • True Crime
    • Documentaries
    • Netflix
    • BBC
    • ITV
    • Tyla Recommends
  • Beauty
    • Hair
    • Make-up
    • Skincare
  • Style
    • Home
    • Fashion
    • Shopping
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
Submit Your Content
Teacher speaks out after being shot by six-year-old student in her classroom

Home> News

Published 18:57 31 Mar 2023 GMT+1

Teacher speaks out after being shot by six-year-old student in her classroom

"I'm not sure when the shock will ever go away… I think about it daily."

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

A teacher who was shot by a six-year-old student in her classroom has opened up about the terrifying ordeal.

Abigail Zwerner, 25, has spoken out for the first time since being shot by a young boy at Richneck Elementary School in the city of Newport News, Virginia, on 6 January.

In an interview with NBC’s Today, she said: "I thought I had died."

Police said the primary school student had brought the gun – which was legally purchased and belonged to his mother - to school in his backpack.

Advert

His family said he suffered from an ‘acute disability’ and usually didn’t go to school without one of his parents, but had been alone the day of the shooting.

Zwerner said the morning felt ‘like just a regular school day’, but that fear set in when she saw the gun being pointed at her.

"I remember the look on his face,” she recalled.

“I remember feeling something. It was a pretty scary day."

Advert

Zwerner said doctors told her the gunshot wound 'could've been fatal’, but the fact it went through her hand first ‘most likely’ saved her life.

"The initial gunshot went through my left hand and ruptured the middle bone as well as the index finger and the thumb,” she said.

Abigail Zwerner.
NBC

Pointing to near her heart, the teacher added: “The gunshot then went into my chest up here where it actually still remains.

Advert

"So, I have a scar up here, and I still have some bullet fragments up here."

After being shot, Zwerner was worried about the other students and led them out of the classroom to safety, despite being injured.

"I'm not sure when the shock will ever go away… I think about it daily,” she said.

Zwerner now plans to sue the school district, with an intent-to-sue notice by her lawyer alleging that school leaders had been warned multiple times that the six-year-old child had a firearm, but that the school failed to respond adequately.

Advert

After the shooting, the school’s superintendent was fired and the assistant principal resigned, while full-time security and metal detectors have since been installed.

Neither the boy nor his family have been charged, with Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney Howard Gwynn saying his office would not seek charges against the youngster as the ‘prospect that a six-year-old can stand trial is problematic’, as he is too young to understand the legal system.

Doctors said the gunshot wound could have been fatal if it didn't go through her hand.
NBC

A statement released by the family said the boy had been in hospital receiving the ‘treatment he needs’.

Advert

“Our family has always been committed to responsible gun ownership and keeping firearms out of the reach of children,” it said.

“The firearm our son accessed was secured.”

The statement explained that the boy ‘suffers from an acute disability and was under a care plan at the school that included his mother or father attending school with him and accompanying him to class every day’, adding: “Additionally, our son has benefitted from an extensive community of care that also includes his grandparents working alongside us and other caregivers to ensure his needs and accommodations are met. The week of the shooting was the first week when we were not in class with him. We will regret our absence on this day for the rest of our lives.”

Tyla has reached out to Newport News Public Schools for comment.

Featured Image Credit: NBC/Facebook/Abigail Zwerner

Topics: News, Life

Jess Hardiman
Jess Hardiman

Jess is Entertainment Desk Lead at LADbible Group. She graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

X

@Jess_Hardiman

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

25 mins ago
an hour ago
16 hours ago
  • 25 mins ago

    Israeli prime minister gives surprising letter to Donald Trump during meeting

    Benjamin Netanyahu met with the US President at the White House on Monday (7 Jul) to discuss tensions in the Middle East

    News
  • an hour ago

    Teenage camp counsellor details heartbreaking account of what she saw after devastating floods which killed at least 27

    Camp Mystic lost a total of 27 campers and counsellors in the deadly floods

    News
  • 16 hours ago

    Camp Mystic security guard issues emotional statement after using mattresses in heroic act to rescue girls from deadly floods

    In total, at least 82 people are confirmed to have lost their lives following the flash floods in Texas on Friday (4 July)

    News
  • 16 hours ago

    Meghan Markle fans spot ‘creepy’ detail in newly shared photos with her and Prince Harry

    The Duchess of Sussex shared a new Instagram post to celebrate the Fourth of July

    News
  • 9-year-old girl dies after being left in extremely hot car for six hours while mum was at work
  • Man arrested after being accused of trying to marry nine-year-old at Disneyland during fake ceremony
  • 24-year-old vape addict issues terrifying warning after suffering heart attack
  • Woman who 'loved vaping' speaks out after 'black goo' poured out of her