Newly released body camera video from Newport News, Virginia shows the moments after the Jan. 6, 2023 shooting at Richneck Elementary School, when a first-grader shot his teacher, Abigail “Abby” Zwerner. In the footage, the 6-year-old curses at officers as they try to locate the gun and secure the scene.
The video, ordered released by a judge with the child’s face blurred, adds detail to a case that has already produced major civil and criminal proceedings. It also captures how quickly a school shooting becomes a matter for first responders, investigators, and courts.
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What the video shows
The body camera video begins shortly after the shooting. An officer asks, “Where is the weapon?” The child answers, “It’s over there,” while cursing at the officer. He then says, “If you want a piece of me, come it all, b----.”
Later, the child screams at officers, “Both of y’all want a f---ing piece of me, b----.” He also tells police, “I don’t care if you call backup. I don’t care if I go to jail.”
The footage shows the child cursing at a different teacher as that teacher restrains him while police begin processing the scene. The teacher holding him says the child still has gun residue on his hands.
The shooting
The shooting happened at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News on Jan. 6, 2023. The bullet tore through Zwerner’s hand before striking her in the chest, where it remains.
At a civil trial against the school’s former assistant principal, Ebony Parker, a doctor testified that removing the bullet would be far more dangerous than leaving it in place.
Zwerner testified that she believed she was dying after she was shot. “I thought I was on my way to heaven or in heaven,” she said. “But then it all got black.” Zwerner no longer teaches.
What the jury found
A jury awarded Zwerner $10 million in damages, plus interest, last year after finding that Parker ignored warnings that the child had a gun in his backpack. The jury said the shooting could have been avoided and that Parker’s gross negligence led to the incident.
Why the video was sealed
The video was initially sealed during Parker’s criminal case, in which she was charged with eight counts of child neglect. A judge dismissed the case in May, ruling that Parker had not committed a crime under state law.
The judge later decided the video could be released but ordered the child’s face blurred.
The mother’s charges
The child’s mother, Deja Taylor, was arrested after the shooting on a state charge of felony child neglect and a federal weapons charge. In 2023, she was sentenced to two years in prison on the child neglect charge and 21 months on the weapons charge.
What the child said about the gun
In the video, the child refers to the gun and says, “My mom had that.” He adds, “I stole that from my mom.”