A grade-one teacher who was shot in the chest by a six-year-old boy is improving from his injuries. Investigators believe that the pupil got into a disagreement with Abby Zwerner before shooting her. This happened at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News in Virginia.
According to a parent, Sebastian Gonzalez-Hernandez, whose son was in the class, the teacher shouted at the other kids telling them to run away when she was being fired on with a single bullet.
‘Even after she’d been shot she was thinking about the safety of her children,’ the parent added.
‘She is an amazing teacher, so dedicated. My son absolutely loves her, and we’re devastated about what’s happened. We are all thinking of her and hoping that she gets better soon.’
The wounded teacher was rushed to hospital for medical treatment in a critical condition at around 2:00 pm.
‘I do think that after this event, there is going to be a nationwide discussion on how these sorts of things can be prevented.’
According to a grandmother of one of the pupils, one of the children had in the past brought bullets to the school and was planning to come with a gun next time.
According to the local security agencies, the school is able to use metal detectors but they do not do so on a regular basis.
‘When we have a perceived threat or issue, we do random metal detection on those days,’ security official told media.
‘Today, our students got a lesson in gun violence,’ Parker said. ‘We need to keep the guns out of the hands of our young people.’
‘Guns, that’s the biggest problem in this country. Why is there a seven-year-old [sic] with a bloody gun? … How does a seven-year-old have a gun?, one of the parents asked.
‘I’m only here because my husband is in the military. Otherwise, I would not have chosen to come to this country.’
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