The gun that a 6-year-old boy would have used to shoot his teacher at a Virginia school was bought legally by the boy’s mother.
Authorities in Newport reported this week that the boy took the gun from home and brought it to school in his backpack, though it’s unclear how he got access to it or if it was secured.
The incident occurred Friday afternoon at Richneck Elementary, Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew confirmed Monday.
Allegedly, the teacher, identified by local media as Abby Zwerner, was giving some instructions as part of the class when the suspect pulled out the gun, pointed it at her and shot her.
According to Drew’s version cited by media such as CNN, there was no physical fight or fight before the attack.
Although the teacher was shot in the chest, she is in stable condition.
There are no details about what led the student to take it against the educator.
At the moment, the alleged gunman is under a temporary detention order and is being evaluated at a local hospital.
“We have been in contact with our state attorney and a few other entities to help us better serve this young man,” Drew said at Friday’s conference call. The authorities do not rule out filing charges against the parents of the minor as the investigation of the case progresses.
The campus will remain closed this week to give students time to recover, the institution announced.
Police and school authorities praised the quick response of employees to detain the minor. About five minutes after the shooting, reported at 1:59 pm, an employee had the student subdued, who was reacting combatively and to beatings.
Subsequently, agents controlled the boy and transferred him to a police patrol.
The wounded teacher apparently made sure all her students left the classroom immediately after the shooting. Subsequently, she went to the administration office to report the situation.
“Abby was faithful as a teacher,” Newport News Mayor Phillip Jones said of the teacher’s action. “She made sure everyone was okay and that she was the last to go,” he pointed out.
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