VIRGINIA: An American elementary school teacher shot by her six-year-old student plans to file a lawsuit against school authorities saying they ignored multiple warnings over the threat, her lawyer said on Wednesday.
Attorney Diane Toscano said administrators at the Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia were warned three times on Jan 6 by her client Abigail Zwerner and other teachers that the boy could have a gun and was threatening others.
Zwerner survived the shooting but was seriously injured. That morning Zwerner, 25, told school administrators that the boy, who has not been identified, had threatened to beat up another child. “But the school administration could not be bothered,” Toscano said.
An hour later another teacher told them that the boy apparently brought a gun to school but she did not see it in his school bag and that he might have it in his pockets. A third teacher then reported that another student said while crying that he had seen the gun and been threatened with it.
Still, no action was taken, and a school employee was denied permission to physically search the boy. An administrator said the boy “has little pockets” and that the issue could be left until the school day ends. “Tragically almost an hour later, violence struck at Richneck Elementary School. Abby Zwerner was shot in front of those horrified kids,” said Toscano. –Agencies
