A 6-year-old boy who shot and killed a first-grade teacher at Richneck Elementary School in Virginia last year showed signs of violence before the shooting and should not be enrolled in school, according to a special grand jury report released Wednesday. It is said that there was not.
Behavioral problems:
The child was “exhibiting a number of behavioral problems” before the Jan. 6, 2023, incident in which he shot teacher Abby Zwirner with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun. While in kindergarten, the child reportedly engaged in disruptive behavior toward both students and teacher Susan White, who was named in the grand jury report.
“Throughout the first year of kindergarten, the child exhibited a number of problematic behaviors,” the special grand jury report said. “He was disruptive both in class and with teacher Susan White. The child would ‘get in other children’s faces’ and would occasionally hit and punch the counselor when removed from the class. I did.”
“In one incident, a child kicked and spat on an assistant teacher,” the report states.
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Police watch as students return to Rich Neck Elementary School on January 30, 2023, in Newport News, Virginia. (Billy Schuurman/Virginia Pilot, via AP, File)
A special grand jury detailed a disturbing incident in September 2021 in which a student strangled a kindergarten teacher.
“On September 27, 2021, Mr. White was finishing breakfast with his students when the child went to throw away the breakfast in the trash can in the hallway and did not return. When Mr. White went to look for it, a security guard Mr. White took him by the hand and tried to lead him back to the classroom, but the child punched him and yelled, “No!” “I don’t want to go back to class.” The child then violently twisted the guard’s wrist and pulled him down.Because of his attitude, the security guard removed the child.[副校長のパーカー博士、ホワイト先生の所に連れて行きました]returned to class,” the report said.[assistantprincipal-DrParkerwhileMsWhitereturnedtoclass”thereportsaid[assistantprincipal-DrParkerwhileMsWhitereturnedtoclass”thereportsaid
“At one point, Mr. White was teaching the class while sitting in a high chair. The child went up behind Mr. White, put his forearm in front of Mr. White’s neck, and pulled down so hard that Mr. White The child was unable to breathe and suffocated. The assistant saw Ms. White being strangled by the child and rescued her by ripping the child’s arm and removing her from the class.”
Despite the child’s actions, the child was returned to the classroom and allowed to remain as the school announced that there was “no administrator available to handle the situation.”
Despite the physical attack and profanity, the child was not given an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or considered for an alternative school, the report said.
Students and police gather outside Rich Neck Elementary School after a shooting in Newport News, Virginia, on January 6, 2023. (Billy Schuurman/Virginia Pilot, via AP, File)
The grand jury also recommended further investigation into how the school handled two files on students that were both missing when authorities executed search warrants.
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One file was returned by administrators, but the file was missing the child’s disciplinary records, the report said. The other one was not found.
The Virginia teacher who authorities say was shot and killed by a 6-year-old student is known as a hard-working educator who is dedicated to his students and passionate about his family’s profession. (AP Photo/John C. Clark)
Security issues:
The report details security issues that were allegedly “unaddressed or dismissed.”
The report said Rich Neck Elementary School did not have a “consistent, full-time” school resource officer (SRO) at the time of the shooting.
In addition to not having an SRO, the school had a defective front door system that had been “broken for several weeks” before the Jan. 6, 2023, shooting.
The school also did not conduct school lockdown drills, despite federal orders.
The report also said the classrooms did not have a clear path for training because they did not have “doors or permanent walls (the walls were made of partitions).”
If no response:
The report provides details about the events leading up to and during the shooting.
Shortly before the shooting, the boy “immediately began to show signs of aggression” during lunch and was escorted out of the room by Zwerner.
In August 2022, just before the new school year, Brianna Foster Newton, former principal of Richneck Elementary School. (Twitter/@BriNewton_EDU)
Zwerner went to the school’s assistant principal, Ebony Parker, and told her that the student was in a violent mood.
“Dr. Parker did not respond. Dr. Parker did not take his eyes off the computer screen. Dr. Parker did not acknowledge Mr. Zwerner’s presence,” the report states.
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Parker took action after Zwirner left office, the report said. The vice principal told his assistant to call the boy’s mother to come pick him up early.
Abby Zwirner, the teacher who was shot last year by a 6-year-old student at Rich Neck Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia, speaks with reporter Peter Dujardin on Wednesday in Virginia Beach, Virginia. (Stephen M. Katz/The Virginian Pilot, via AP)
The grand jury report said Parker was advised on four separate occasions on the day of the shooting that the child was a “potentially dangerous threat.”
At noon, Rich Neck’s reading specialist told Ms. Parker that two students had told her the child had a gun in his backpack, but it had not been tested.
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At 12:30 p.m., the reading specialist told Parker that they had searched his backpack and found no weapon. Zwerner said the child may have put something in his pocket.
The music teacher alerted Parker that another first-grade teacher had mentioned guns.
At 1:40 p.m., a career guidance counselor told Parker that the child might have a firearm or ammunition and asked if she could search him. He also took no action.”
According to the report, the child, along with 30 other children, “had a firearm hidden in his jacket” during recess.
On Monday, January 9, 2023, Newport News residents will hold a candlelight vigil in memory of Rich Neck Elementary School first grade teacher Abby Zwirner at the school administration building in Newport News, Virginia. (AP Photo/John C. Clark)
At 1:58 p.m., Zwerner saw the child turn toward him and raise a firearm.
“The man pointed directly at Mr. Zwerner and pulled the trigger less than six feet away, fatally shooting Mr. Zwerner,” the report states.
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The gun the boy fired at Zwerner jammed after firing the first round, the report said.
There were seven more bullets in the magazine and 15 other second-graders in the classroom.
“His lack of force on the first shot caused the gun to jam and he was unable to shoot Ms. (Abigail) Zwerner or anyone else again,” the report said. “The firearm had a full magazine and was capable of firing an additional seven rounds without interference.”
