The mother of the six-year-old first grader who shot his teacher has been indicted for the incident. Newport News, Virginia, mother Deja Taylor is charged with felony child neglect and one misdemeanor count of endangering a child by reckless storage of a firearm.
The child will not be charged with any crimes.
Ms. Taylor’s attorney, James Ellenson, released a statement after the announcement of the indictment against his client, saying that she “has cooperated from the first day of the incident,” and will turn herself in to authorities.
“As always, first and foremost is the continued health and wellbeing of all persons involved in the incident at Richneck Elementary School, to include both the teacher and Deja’s son,” noted Ellenson.
In January, the family shared a release, saying the six-year-old boy had been suffering from an acute disability and was receiving the "treatment he needs" after a court-ordered temporary detention at a medical facility.
Teacher Abigail Zwerner, 25, was shot at the Richneck Elementary School in Newport News on January 6. Her injuries included shots to her chest and one of her hands. On April 3, Ms. Zwerner filed a lawsuit against the school, seeking $40 million in damages. Her suit alleges gross negligence because the school officials allegedly ignored numerous warnings on the day of the shooting that the student had a gun and was acting in a “violent mood.”
As a result of the shooting, the teacher spent two weeks in the hospital and received four separate surgeries to deal with her injuries.
The young boy’s mother purchased the gun and kept it on a top shelf in her bedroom closet, where it was supposedly kept secure by a trigger lock. But the child retrieved the gun and took it took to school, shooting his teacher.
The Virginia Commonwealth said the indictment stems from a “thorough investigation” by the police and the Commonwealth’s attorney’s office.
“Every criminal case is unique in its facts, and these facts support these charges, but our investigation into the shooting continues,” said the Commonwealth’s Attorney Howard Gwynn in the press release.
With a nod to the new lawsuit by the teacher and victim in the shooting, Gwynn also petitioned the Newport News Circuit Court to create a special grand jury to investigate security issues at the Richneck Elementary School at the time of the shooting.
"The safety and security of Newport News students is of utmost importance,” said Gwynn. “The Special Grand Jury will investigate to determine whether additional charges against additional persons are justified by the facts and the law. If the Special Grand Jury determines that additional persons are criminally responsible under the law, it can return additional indictments."
When the indictment against Ms. Taylor was announced, the attorney for Ms. Zwerner weighed in publicly, saying there were numerous security issues in the elementary school at the time of the shooting.
“There were failures in accountability at multiple levels that led to Abby being shot and almost killed,” said Diane Toscano, Ms. Zwerner’s attorney. “Today’s announcement addresses but one of those failures. It has been three months of investigation and still so many unanswered questions remain. Our lawsuit makes clear that we believe the school division violated state law, and we are pursuing this in civil court. We will not allow school leaders to escape accountability for their role in this tragedy.”
If Ms. Taylor is found guilty of the full charges, she could be sentenced to up to six years in prison. Her bail will be set at $5,000 once she turns herself in this week.
