In January of 2023, a harrowing incident unfolded at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia: a six-year-old student brought a firearm into his first-grade classroom and shot his teacher, Abby Zwerner, then aged 25. The case has since reverberated through school safety discussions, legal accountability debates, and mental-health advocacy in educational settings. On November 6 2025, a civil jury awarded Zwerner $10 million in a landmark verdict, finding the school’s assistant principal, Ebony Parker, liable for gross negligence. This article offers a detailed, factual account of the incident, the legal proceedings, and its broader significance.
The Incident: January 6 2023
On January 6, 2023, during a first-grade reading session at Richneck Elementary School, a six-year-old male student produced a 9 mm handgun and fired it at teacher Abby Zwerner. The bullet passed through her left hand, then lodged in her chest, narrowly missing her heart and remaining in her body. She nonetheless helped evacuate her students and was transported to hospital, where she underwent multiple surgeries. The school and community were stunned by the incident, given the age of the shooter and the classroom setting.
The student had reportedly brought the weapon from home—obtained from his mother’s possession—and carried it in his backpack into the classroom. Prior to the shooting, staff at the school had raised concerns multiple times that the student may have had access to a weapon or been acting dangerously. The day of the shooting, teachers reported that the boy had shown another student what looked like a gun in his pocket during recess, had threatened others, and had previously exhibited extreme behavior including choking a teacher and exhibiting violent outbursts.
Despite those warnings, the shooting occurred around 2 p.m. local time. Zwerner described in court that as she sat at the reading table, confronted by the child’s look and the gun, she believed she was dying, “either on the way to heaven or in heaven,” before losing consciousness. The incident raised immediate and intense questions about how a six-year-old came to bring a gun to school, and how school administrators responded to warning signs.
Prompt Warnings and Response
According to legal filings and testimony, multiple school staff members alerted administrators that morning and throughout the day that the student may have had a gun or was acting with violent intent. These alerts included:
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- A first-grade teacher (Zwerner) who reported the student was “in a violent mood” and had threatened to beat up another student that morning.
- A reading specialist who searched the student’s backpack after being told he had taken something out of his bag, but found no weapon; the incident was reported to the assistant principal.
- A second teacher who told the assistant principal that the student had shown another pupil a gun in his pocket during recess and threatened to shoot them if they reported it.
The lawsuit filed by Zwerner alleged that Ebony Parker, the assistant principal, took minimal action, telling staff “he has little pockets” and that she would deal with the matter later, rather than activating security protocols or removing the student. Approximately an hour after these warnings, the shooting took place.
The district later acknowledged the school lacked adequate screening protocols and security measures. The shooting thrust the school and district into national attention and prompted a wider review of school safety policies and firearm-storage laws in Virginia.
The Aftermath and Zwerner’s Recovery
Following the shooting, Abby Zwerner underwent six surgeries and now lives with long-term physical and psychological consequences. The bullet remains lodged near her spine; she no longer has full use of her left hand and has exhibited signs of post-traumatic stress and social isolation. She also testified she has struggled with daily activities such as opening bottles or bags and has been unable to return to teaching.
By mid-2023, Zwerner resigned from her teaching position and later completed a cosmetology program, though she reported being unable to find a job in that field due to her ongoing physical limitations. She described in court how her right hand and wrist now suffer pain from over-compensating for the injured left hand.
The incident led the Newport News Public Schools district to implement additional security measures at Richneck Elementary, including permanent security officers, metal detectors, clear backpacks for students, and changes to door access and supervision protocols. The school board also reassigned key administrators and launched internal reviews of safety and behavioral-intervention systems.
The Civil Lawsuit: Zwerner v. Parker
In April 2023, Zwerner filed a lawsuit seeking $40 million in compensatory damages and alleging gross negligence by Parker, the school district and other administrators. The complaint argued that Parker learned of repeated warnings the student had a gun, yet failed to act, thereby exposing Zwerner and her students to severe risk.
By April 2025, the school board and other district officials were dismissed as defendants due to sovereign-immunity claims. The only remaining defendant was Ebony Parker. The trial commenced October 28, 2025 in Newport News. Zwerner took the stand, vividly recounting the moments before the shooting and the long tunnel of recovery that followed.
During closing arguments, Zwerner’s attorney told jurors: “A gun changes everything. You stop and you investigate.” The defense argued that Parker made real-time judgments under unprecedented circumstances and could not have foreseen the act of a six-year-old bringing a weapon and firing it. Expert testimony covered Zwerner’s physical injuries, her psychological trauma, and the long-term life-altering damage.
On November 6, 2025, the jury returned a verdict in Zwerner’s favor, awarding her $10 million in damages against Parker alone. This verdict acknowledged the assistant principal’s liability in failing to respond appropriately to the known risks. It also highlighted the scrutiny that school safety and administrative accountability face in cases of campus violence.
Key Legal Findings
- The jury found that Parker ignored multiple warnings that the 6-year-old student possessed a firearm or acted in a way that indicated a weapon could be present. Staff testified to those warnings and alleged lack of action.
- It was determined that Zwerner suffered serious, long-term harm: six surgeries, permanent impairment of her left hand, a bullet lodged near her heart, ongoing daily challenges, PTSD symptoms and career disruption.
- The verdict held Parker individually liable for gross negligence, meaning her actions fell far below the standard of care expected for a school administrator tasked with student and teacher safety.
- The size of the award ($10 million) reflects both the severity of Zwerner’s injuries and the jury’s finding of accountability on the part of school leadership for systemic failure.
- The case sets a potential precedent for civil liability of school administrators when warning signs ahead of a shooting are ignored. It signals to other districts that proactive action and safety protocols are essential to avoid liability.
Criminal Proceedings and Related Accountability
While the civil verdict resolved one aspect of the case, criminal accountability remains ongoing. Parker faces eight felony counts of child neglect in the shooting case, one count for each bullet that endangered students in the classroom. That trial is scheduled following the civil decision. If convicted, she could face up to five years in prison per count.
The student’s mother, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty in federal court to making a false statement during a gun purchase and unlawful possession of a firearm. She was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison. In state court, she pleaded guilty to child-neglect charges and was sentenced to two years in prison. Her sentencing underscored parental responsibility under gun-storage and child-safety laws.
Wider Implications for Schools, Law and Policy
The dramatic nature of a six-year-old shooting a teacher and the subsequent legal fallout highlight a series of critical issues facing U.S. schools:
- School safety protocols: The fact that the student entered school armed and shot a teacher raised questions about backpack searches, metal-detector use, behavior-flagging systems and the ability of staff to act on credible warnings.
- Administrator liability: This case places school administrators under scrutiny not just for classroom teaching but for their decisions about immediate threats and disciplinary interventions.
- Gun-storage and child access: The child obtained the firearm from his mother’s purse. Critics argue that state and federal laws requiring safe gun storage must be strengthened and enforced to prevent access by minors.
- Age and responsibility in shootings: The case raises ethical and legal dilemmas about how to handle violent acts by very young children. While the student was not charged due to age, the incident spurred debate about early intervention and behavioral-health support.
- Teacher retention and mental-health impact: Zwerner’s injuries and inability to continue teaching highlight the trauma teachers face when violence erupts in classrooms. Schools must address not just physical security but also long-term supports for staff.
Public Reaction and Expert Commentary
The case drew national media attention, given the rarity of violent incidents involving a six-year-old in a classroom. Commentators noted the emotional toll on Zwerner, the lapse in preventive systems, and the potential precedent the verdict sets for schools nationwide.
Experts in education policy emphasized that, while schools cannot guarantee zero risk, they must create layered protections: behavior-monitoring, staff training in threat recognition, search and seizure protocols compliant with students’ rights, and rapid escalation of credible threats. Legal analysts observed that the verdict signals a shift toward holding administrators personally accountable for failing to act on credible warnings.
Gun-violence prevention advocates pointed to the role of safe-storage laws and parental responsibility. According to the case, the student accessed the firearm from his mother’s purse atop a dresser. Critics argue this reflects a gap in laws and enforcement: children should not be able to access loaded firearms in homes. In Virginia, gun-storage laws require guns to be stored securely when children are present or capable of access; failure to do so can lead to negligence charges.
What’s Next and Broader Significance
The trial of Ebony Parker on eight felony child-neglect counts remains to be resolved. Its outcome will further clarify how criminal law addresses school-administrator responsibility in such incidents. Separately, other school districts across the country may revisit their safety protocols, especially for early-grade classes where students are less physically mature and behavior expectations differ from higher grades.
For teachers and school staff, this case underscores the dual role they play: educators and frontline protectors of children. The duty to teach and simultaneously assure safety can create untenable burdens without institutional backup and strong procedures. Zwerner’s departure from teaching and her ongoing physical and psychological challenges reflect the human cost of a single failure in protocol.
In policy terms, the incident may accelerate legislation or regulatory action regarding gun-storage laws, school security funding, and mandatory behavioral-intervention systems. The verdict also offers a cautionary tale: in-school threats—even from children as young as six—cannot be dismissed without evaluation and action.
Conclusion
The story of Abby Zwerner’s shooting, recovery, and legal victory is more than a courtroom drama—it is a profound marker of where America’s schools, safety systems and accountability mechanisms stand. A six-year-old’s access to a handgun triggered a life-altering injury for a teacher and resulted in a landmark court decision awarding $10 million in damages. The case underscores systemic failures: ignored warnings, inadequate threat-response procedures and the ripple effects of trauma on educators. As schools across the nation grapple with how to prevent violence, this incident offers both a warning and a pathway: that administrators must act decisively when credible threats emerge—and that those failures carry real consequences.