The mother of a six-year-old Virginia student who shot his teacher has been hit with criminal charges.
Abigail Zwerner, a 26-year-old schoolteacher was shot in the hand and chest by one of her students on January 6 at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia. According to the New York Post, Zwerner attempted to confiscate the firearm from the child while instructing other kids in the class to exit the room. A shot was then fired into her abdomen and she was rushed to the hospital.
The child was not charged, as Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney Howard Gwynn told CNN affiliate WTKR: "After researching this issue thoroughly, we do not believe the law supports charging and convicting a six-year-old with aggravated assault."
Following the incident and Zwerner making a recovery from her wounds, she has filed a $40 million lawsuit after claiming that the school did nothing to prevent the shooting despite knowing that the child had a firearm.
In Zwerner's lawsuit, she has alleged that the school knew that the child "had a history of random violence" and posed an imminent threat on the day of the shooting, per NBC News.
The complaint was filed at the Newport News Circuit Court and it states that Richneck Assistant Principal Ebony Parker chose to "breach her assumed duty" to protect Zwerner "despite multiple reports that a firearm was on school property and likely in possession of a violent individual."
Lawyers for Zwerner claim that students in the school had seen the gun on the day of the shooting and that school officials had been warned and chose not to act.
Now, the mother of the child - named as 25-year-old Deja Taylor - has been indicted by a grand jury with felony child neglect, as well as a misdemeanor charge.
Howard Gwynn, a prosecuting attorney released a statement on Monday (April 10) shortly after Taylor was charged. They revealed that the charges had resulted from a "thorough investigation," adding (via BBC News): "Every criminal case is unique in its facts, and these facts support these charges, but our investigation into the shooting continues."
It is possible that, as the investigation continues, further charges could be announced - especially as police are beginning to look into the school's security issues, and how the child was able to bring the gun with him in the first place.
"If the Special Grand Jury determines that additional persons are criminally responsible under the law, it can return additional indictments," Gwynn added.
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