A grand jury in Virginia indicted the boy’s mother after the young boy took her handgun to his elementary school and shot his first grade teacher.
The 25-year-old woman, who is not being named publicly to protect the identity of her son, was charged with felony child neglect and a misdemeanor charge of endangering a child by reckless storage of a firearm, according to the Commonwealth’s Attorney Howard Gwynn.
The boy shot first-grade teacher Abby Zwerner in early January in her classroom at Richneck Elementary School.
Police say the firearm he used was legally purchased. The mother’s attorney, James Ellenson, said the gun was secured on a closet shelf over six feet high with a trigger lock that required a key to remove.
How the boy obtained the firearm and removed the lock is unknown at this time.
“Every criminal case is unique in its facts, and these facts support these charges, but our investigation into the shooting continues,” Gwynn said.
“The safety and security of Newport News students is of utmost importance. The Special Grand Jury will investigate to determine whether additional charges against additional persons are justified by the facts and the law.”
Police Chief Steve Drew has called the shooting “intentional”. He said there was no warning or conflict immediately before the child pointed the gun at Zwerner and fired a single shot.
After the shooting was reported, the boy’s family said he has an “acute disability” and is under a care plan “that included his mother or father attending school with him and accompanying him to class every day.”
The week of the shooting was the first when a parent did not attend with him.
The child is reportedly now under hospital care receiving “the treatment he needs”.
In a lawsuit filed by the victim last week, attorney’s accused school officials of ignoring warnings from teachers and employees that the boy was in a violent mood and suspected of carrying the firearm.
School officials disclosed during their initial investigation that administrators suspected the boy was armed and even searched his backpack, but did not find the weapon at that time.
The school had also installed metal detectors just three weeks before the shooting occurred, which evidently did not detect the gun.
