Virginia school teacher shot by 6-year-old claims she was fired from district, school says she resigned

Newport News Public Schools said that the last day of 25-year-old Abby Zwerner's contract was on Monday, saying that Zwerner notified human resources in March that she would not be returning next year, the Associated Press reports.

Jeffrey Breit, Zwerner's lawyer, told WAVY-TV that his client received an email from the school which read, "processed a separation of employment for you effective the close of business 06/12/2023."

Breit told the outlet that Zwerner had interpreted the email that she was fired from the district. "I don’t think you can read this any other way than you’ve been fired. And that’s what she thinks. She doesn’t understand it; there’s no other communication," he said.

Newport News Public Schools district said in a statement that, "Every employee who is separating from the school division receives a similar communication," according to the Associated Press. The school also reportedly provided emails between the district and Zwerner in which she wrote: "I wish to resign, thank you."

On Jan. 6, Zwerner was shot by a six-year-old student in the hand and chest while she was sitting at a reading table in her first-grade classroom. The incident resulted in significant injuries, which included a two-week stay in the hospital and multiple surgeries.

Deja Nicole Taylor, the mother of the student who shot his teacher, was criminally charged by a grand jury in Newport News, Virginia, and faces up to six years in prison for felony child neglect and recklessly leaving a firearm so as to endanger a child.

The first grader used his mother's handgun, a Taurus 9mm, which he brought to school in his backpack.

According to court documents, Taylor obtained the firearm legally and maintains it was secured by a trigger lock and stored on the top shelf of a closet. Taylor claims she does not know how her son accessed it.

Taylor pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday and her trial is set to begin in August, AP reports.

In April, Zwerner filed a $40 million lawsuit against Richneck Elementary School in Virginia which alleges that authorities at the school ignored multiple warnings that the first-grade student possessed a firearm in his backpack and told other students that he was in a "violent mood" that day, according to Associated Press.

Jeffrey Breit, Zwerner's lawyer, argued to the judge that the school knew the student "had a history of random violence," and mentioned a past incident where the student had "strangled and choked" his kindergarten teacher the year before, court documents show.

"Teachers' concerns with John Doe’s behavior (were) regularly brought to the attention of Richneck Elementary School administration, and the concerns were always dismissed," the lawsuit states.

The Richneck Elementary School Board argued that Zwerner should receive workers' compensation and asked a judge to dismiss the case, which is still pending, AP reports.

"While in an ideal world, young children would not pose any danger to others, including their teachers, this is sadly not reality," the board argued, rejecting Zwerner's claims that teachers shouldn't have to work with known violent students.

The school board said Zwerner has refused to accept workers' compensation.