NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — The shooting of a first-grade teacher by a 6-year-old boy has plunged the nation into uncharted waters of school violence, with many in the Virginia shipbuilding city where it happened demanding metal detectors in every school.
On Thursday, the Newport News School Board announced that 90 walk-through metal detectors would be placed in schools across the district, starting with Richneck Elementary School, where teacher Abigail Zwerner was shot Friday.
“The time is now to put metal detectors in all of our schools,” board Chairman Lisa Surles-Law told a news conference.
“This is a real game changer,” said Mo Canady, executive director of the National Association of School Resource Officers.
“How do we begin to approach the idea of protecting students & staff from an armed 6-year-old?”
“Metal detectors & clear backpacks are more likely to cause young children to be fearful and feel criminalized,” said Amanda Nickerson, a school psychology professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Police say the 6-year-old brought his mother’s gun, which had been purchased legally, to school. A Virginia law prohibits leaving a loaded gun where it is accessible to a child under 14, a misdemeanor crime punishable with a maximum 1-year prison sentence & $2,500 fine. No charges have been brought against the mother so far.
The shooting Friday occurred as Zwerner taught her first-grade class at Richneck Elementary. There was no warning & no struggle before the 6-year-old pointed the gun at Zwerner & fired 1 round.
The bullet pierced Zwerner’s hand & struck her chest. The 25-year-old was rushed to the hospital. She's listed in stable condition.
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