(Trends Wide) — As many other American cities have done before, this time Newport News, Virginia is dealing with the aftermath of a school shooting.
This time, however, the alleged shooter is only 6 years old, according to police, who said the boy opened fire in a classroom at Richneck Elementary School, sending a teacher to the hospital. The age of the alleged shooter has left a community and a country reeling at the prospect of a first grader getting a gun, taking it to school and opening fire on her teacher.
Authorities have provided general information about the shooting. But there are numerous questions that remain unanswered, including how a 6-year-old boy allegedly obtained a gun and what the potential legal repercussions are for the student or his guardians, something city officials have acknowledged in recent days.
“There are a lot of questions we need to answer as a community,” Newport News Mayor Phillip Jones told Trends Wide on Sunday, including “how could a 6-year-old have a gun, know how to use it in such a deliberate way?” .
“Responsible individuals will be held accountable,” the mayor said. “I can promise that.”
Here’s a look at what we know—and don’t know—about Friday’s shooting.
The 6-year-old student is in police custody
Police have released few details about the student, other than the fact that he is 6 years old and had been in police custody since Friday, according to Police Chief Steve Drew.
The shooting was not accidental, Drew said, adding that it followed an altercation between the teacher and the student. There were no other students involved, she said.
The shooting sent students crawling under their desks as parents ran to catch up with their children.
Novah Jones, a fifth-grader, believed there was a man with a gun, she told Trends Wide, adding: “It was my first lockdown and I didn’t know what to do, so I hid under my desk like everyone else,” said.
Outside, traffic stopped around the school as parents rushed to Richneck Elementary School, said Mark Anthony Garcia, a parent of a second-grader.
“There were police helicopters everywhere outside, traffic was backed up,” he told Trends Wide “This Morning” on Monday. “Then there was a 3-mile radius cordoned off parked cars and people running, trying to get to the scene.” .
Authorities have contacted the boy’s parents, police spokeswoman Kelly King told Trends Wide’s Brian Todd on Monday, but could not identify them.
Messages of support for teacher Abby Zwerner, who police say was shot by a 6-year-old student. The messages are posted on the front door of Richneck Elementary School. (John C. Clark/AP)
The teacher is in a stable condition
Newport News officials have also not identified the victim, but James Madison University, her alma mater, identified the teacher in a statement as Abby Zwerner, who is also listed as a first-grade teacher in Newport’s online staff directory. Richneck Elementary.
“All of us at James Madison University are deeply saddened by the reported tragic shooting of JMU alumnus Abby Zwerner,” said University President Jonathan R. Alger.
While his injuries were initially described as life-threatening, he was listed as in stable condition as of Saturday, the Newport News Police Department said.
In an interview with Trends Wide on Sunday, the Newport News mayor confirmed the victim was in stable condition, adding that city officials had visited the hospital in recent days.
“We have spoken with the family almost every day,” Jones said.
Student likely too young to stand trial, expert says
It is unclear what legal consequences the student responsible for the shooting will or will not face.
While it’s technically possible for prosecutors to bring charges against a 6-year-old boy in Virginia, which has no legal age limit, “it’s incredibly unlikely that it will lead to a successful prosecution,” said Andrew Block, an associate professor at the University of Virginia School of Law.
The main hurdle, Block said, is that the defendant must be found competent to stand trial, which means the court must find that the defendant can understand the nature of the legal proceedings against him and help his lawyers in their case. self defense.
“It’s virtually impossible to imagine that a 6-year-old would meet any of the criteria needed to find jurisdiction,” said Block, who was also the director of the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice.
Hypothetically, if prosecutors fail to press charges, lawyers for the 6-year-old would have at their disposal “advocacy for children,” Block said, which essentially says that anyone under the age of 7 can never be held criminally responsible.
The student would also likely be too young for a detention center if convicted, Block told Trends Wide. “The juvenile justice system is not set up to handle children this young,” she said.
Courts would have limited options in Virginia, where one must be 11 to be detained in a state facility, Block said. That leaves other possibilities open, such as residential treatment or “whole” family support services.
Alternatively, the student could be found to be a “child in need of services,” Block said, which would mean the child was “engaging in behavior that places himself or others at serious risk of harm,” and the courts they could intervene to make sure the child received the necessary services.
“Given what little we know, it seems like it would be a more convenient, appropriate and hopefully productive path for people if it ends up going to court,” Block said.
“It’s certainly a possibility” that the mother will face charges
The mother of a 6-year-old boy could face charges, Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew said Tuesday.
“I think it’s certainly a possibility,” Drew told “Trends Wide This Morning,” a day after police confirmed the boy took the firearm from his home and brought it to school in his backpack on Friday before leaving. allegedly opening fire in a classroom.
However, Drew stressed that the investigation is ongoing.
“We need to check with Child Protective Services about any history. We need to check in with the school system on any behavior issues he may have and resolve them,” she said. “There are still 16, 17 children that we want to work with a child psychologist to get some statement.”
Before police revealed that the gun was legally purchased by the mother, Andrew Block, an associate professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, told Trends Wide that there was a scenario in which the parents could be criminally liable if they the weapon was theirs and they did not properly lock it up. But in Virginia, that’s just a Class 1 misdemeanor, Block said.
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(Trends Wide) — As many other American cities have done before, this time Newport News, Virginia is dealing with the aftermath of a school shooting.
This time, however, the alleged shooter is only 6 years old, according to police, who said the boy opened fire in a classroom at Richneck Elementary School, sending a teacher to the hospital. The age of the alleged shooter has left a community and a country reeling at the prospect of a first grader getting a gun, taking it to school and opening fire on her teacher.
Authorities have provided general information about the shooting. But there are numerous questions that remain unanswered, including how a 6-year-old boy allegedly obtained a gun and what the potential legal repercussions are for the student or his guardians, something city officials have acknowledged in recent days.
“There are a lot of questions we need to answer as a community,” Newport News Mayor Phillip Jones told Trends Wide on Sunday, including “how could a 6-year-old have a gun, know how to use it in such a deliberate way?” .
“Responsible individuals will be held accountable,” the mayor said. “I can promise that.”
Here’s a look at what we know—and don’t know—about Friday’s shooting.
The 6-year-old student is in police custody
Police have released few details about the student, other than the fact that he is 6 years old and had been in police custody since Friday, according to Police Chief Steve Drew.
The shooting was not accidental, Drew said, adding that it followed an altercation between the teacher and the student. There were no other students involved, she said.
The shooting sent students crawling under their desks as parents ran to catch up with their children.
Novah Jones, a fifth-grader, believed there was a man with a gun, she told Trends Wide, adding: “It was my first lockdown and I didn’t know what to do, so I hid under my desk like everyone else,” said.
Outside, traffic stopped around the school as parents rushed to Richneck Elementary School, said Mark Anthony Garcia, a parent of a second-grader.
“There were police helicopters everywhere outside, traffic was backed up,” he told Trends Wide “This Morning” on Monday. “Then there was a 3-mile radius cordoned off parked cars and people running, trying to get to the scene.” .
Authorities have contacted the boy’s parents, police spokeswoman Kelly King told Trends Wide’s Brian Todd on Monday, but could not identify them.
Messages of support for teacher Abby Zwerner, who police say was shot by a 6-year-old student. The messages are posted on the front door of Richneck Elementary School. (John C. Clark/AP)
The teacher is in a stable condition
Newport News officials have also not identified the victim, but James Madison University, her alma mater, identified the teacher in a statement as Abby Zwerner, who is also listed as a first-grade teacher in Newport’s online staff directory. Richneck Elementary.
“All of us at James Madison University are deeply saddened by the reported tragic shooting of JMU alumnus Abby Zwerner,” said University President Jonathan R. Alger.
While his injuries were initially described as life-threatening, he was listed as in stable condition as of Saturday, the Newport News Police Department said.
In an interview with Trends Wide on Sunday, the Newport News mayor confirmed the victim was in stable condition, adding that city officials had visited the hospital in recent days.
“We have spoken with the family almost every day,” Jones said.
Student likely too young to stand trial, expert says
It is unclear what legal consequences the student responsible for the shooting will or will not face.
While it’s technically possible for prosecutors to bring charges against a 6-year-old boy in Virginia, which has no legal age limit, “it’s incredibly unlikely that it will lead to a successful prosecution,” said Andrew Block, an associate professor at the University of Virginia School of Law.
The main hurdle, Block said, is that the defendant must be found competent to stand trial, which means the court must find that the defendant can understand the nature of the legal proceedings against him and help his lawyers in their case. self defense.
“It’s virtually impossible to imagine that a 6-year-old would meet any of the criteria needed to find jurisdiction,” said Block, who was also the director of the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice.
Hypothetically, if prosecutors fail to press charges, lawyers for the 6-year-old would have at their disposal “advocacy for children,” Block said, which essentially says that anyone under the age of 7 can never be held criminally responsible.
The student would also likely be too young for a detention center if convicted, Block told Trends Wide. “The juvenile justice system is not set up to handle children this young,” she said.
Courts would have limited options in Virginia, where one must be 11 to be detained in a state facility, Block said. That leaves other possibilities open, such as residential treatment or “whole” family support services.
Alternatively, the student could be found to be a “child in need of services,” Block said, which would mean the child was “engaging in behavior that places himself or others at serious risk of harm,” and the courts they could intervene to make sure the child received the necessary services.
“Given what little we know, it seems like it would be a more convenient, appropriate and hopefully productive path for people if it ends up going to court,” Block said.
“It’s certainly a possibility” that the mother will face charges
The mother of a 6-year-old boy could face charges, Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew said Tuesday.
“I think it’s certainly a possibility,” Drew told “Trends Wide This Morning,” a day after police confirmed the boy took the firearm from his home and brought it to school in his backpack on Friday before leaving. allegedly opening fire in a classroom.
However, Drew stressed that the investigation is ongoing.
“We need to check with Child Protective Services about any history. We need to check in with the school system on any behavior issues he may have and resolve them,” she said. “There are still 16, 17 children that we want to work with a child psychologist to get some statement.”
Before police revealed that the gun was legally purchased by the mother, Andrew Block, an associate professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, told Trends Wide that there was a scenario in which the parents could be criminally liable if they the weapon was theirs and they did not properly lock it up. But in Virginia, that’s just a Class 1 misdemeanor, Block said.
