Teacher Shot by 6-Year-Old Student Wins $10M Lawsuit/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ A Virginia jury awarded $10 million to Abby Zwerner, a former first-grade teacher shot by a 6-year-old student in 2023. The verdict holds former assistant principal Ebony Parker liable for failing to act on multiple warnings that the child had a gun. Zwerner’s injuries were life-altering, ending her teaching career.
$10M School Shooting Verdict Quick Looks
- Jury awards $10 million to teacher Abby Zwerner
- Zwerner was shot by a 6-year-old in her classroom
- Verdict targets former assistant principal Ebony Parker
- Lawsuit claimed Parker ignored repeated gun warnings
- Incident occurred at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News
- Zwerner underwent six surgeries and nearly died
- The bullet remains lodged near her heart
- Zwerner no longer teaches and is now a cosmetologist
- Parker faces separate criminal charges for child neglect
- The student accessed gun by climbing to reach it
Deep Look: Former Teacher Wins $10M in Lawsuit After Being Shot by 6-Year-Old Student
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A Virginia jury has awarded $10 million in damages to former first-grade teacher Abby Zwerner, who was shot by a 6-year-old student in 2023 after school officials allegedly failed to act on multiple warnings. The civil verdict, delivered Thursday, found former assistant principal Ebony Parker liable for negligence after staff repeatedly alerted her that the child had brought a gun to school.
Zwerner, 27 at the time, was shot in her classroom at Richneck Elementary School as she sat at a reading table. A bullet pierced her upper body, missing her heart by millimeters, and now remains lodged near her chest. She endured six surgeries, spent nearly two weeks in the hospital, and suffers permanent damage to her left hand.
The incident shocked both the local military shipbuilding community and the nation, raising difficult questions about school safety, accountability, and how such a young child could access and discharge a firearm.
School Official Found Negligent
Zwerner initially sought $40 million in damages. The jury found Parker, the only remaining defendant in the case, responsible for failing to act in time to prevent the tragedy. A judge had previously dismissed other school officials, including the principal and district superintendent, from the lawsuit.
According to Zwerner’s attorneys, multiple school employees warned Parker on the day of the shooting that the boy was carrying a weapon in his backpack. But, they argued, she failed to conduct a search or notify law enforcement.
“Who would think a 6-year-old would bring a gun to school and shoot their teacher?” Zwerner’s attorney, Diane Toscano, asked jurors. “It’s Dr. Parker’s job to believe that that is possible.”
Parker did not testify during the civil trial, but her defense attorney, Daniel Hogan, argued that it was unfair to judge her decisions with the benefit of hindsight.
“You will be able to judge for yourself whether or not this was foreseeable,” Hogan said, calling the shooting an unforeseeable act by a very young child.
The Day of the Shooting
The shooting occurred on Zwerner’s first day back after the student had been suspended for a previous incident where he slammed her phone. That same morning, a reading specialist warned Zwerner that other students claimed the boy had a gun. Hours later, the child pulled the firearm and shot her at close range.
Despite her injuries, Zwerner evacuated her classroom, ushering her students to safety before collapsing in the school office. She later testified that she believed she was dying.
“I thought I was either on my way to heaven or in heaven,” she told the court. “Then it all got black. My next memory is seeing two co-workers putting pressure on my wound.”
Zwerner has since left the school district and has no plans to return to teaching. She is now a licensed cosmetologist and has publicly stated the trauma of the shooting ended her educational career.
Legal Fallout and Criminal Charges
While Zwerner’s civil case has concluded, Parker still faces a criminal trial set to begin this month. She has been charged with eight counts of felony child neglect, each carrying a potential sentence of up to five years in prison.
The student’s mother has already faced legal consequences. She was sentenced to nearly four years in prison after pleading guilty to felony child neglect and federal weapons violations. Investigators say the child accessed the gun by climbing on a drawer to reach his mother’s purse, which had been placed atop a dresser.
The incident triggered national debates about gun storage, school safety, and the challenges of managing violent behavior in very young students. At the center of those discussions was the question: Could this have been prevented?
The jury’s $10 million verdict sends a strong message that school administrators bear responsibility when credible threats are ignored, even when the perpetrator is a child.
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