NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A Virginia jury awarded $10 million Thursday to former teacher Abby Zwerner, who was shot by a 6-year-old student at Richneck Elementary School in January 2023. The verdict was issued against former assistant principal Ebony Parker, whom Zwerner accused of ignoring repeated warnings that the child had a gun.
Zwerner, who sought $40 million in damages, was seriously wounded when the student fired at her as she sat at a reading table. The bullet narrowly missed her heart, and she required six surgeries and two weeks of hospitalization. Parker was the sole defendant after a judge dismissed other school officials from the case.
Zwerner’s attorneys argued that Parker failed to act on multiple staff reports about the weapon hours before the shooting. “It’s her job to investigate it and get to the very bottom of it,” attorney Diane Toscano told the jury.
Parker faces a separate criminal trial on eight felony child neglect counts later this month. The student’s mother has already been sentenced to nearly four years in prison for child neglect and weapons charges.
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