Virginia judge dismisses charges against assistant principal in teacher shooting case

A Virginia judge has thrown out a case against an elementary school principal who was accused of failing to act on warnings that a six-year-old student had brought a gun to school, leading to the wounding of his teacher in 2023.

The eight-count indictment against Richneck elementary assistant principal Ebony Parker was dismissed abruptly on Thursday on legal principles just one day after prosecutors rested their case.

The Newport News circuit court judge Rebecca Robinson said Parker’s actions did not amount to a crime under Virginia law.

Parker had been accused of failing to act on multiple warnings that the student had a gun that was later used to shoot first-grade teacher Abby Zwerner in her classroom.

Several school employees told Parker they believed the child had a gun in his backpack, only to be told by Parker that the child’s mother would be arriving soon to pick him up for the day, prosecutors said.

But on Thursday, Judge Robinson dismissed the case, ending efforts to find Parker criminally accountable.

Concerns had earlier been raised after a juror had asked for clarification about testimony and referred to the jury in the collective as “we”, indicating that jurors may have discussed the case before deliberations.

Judge Robinson said she made her decision after listening to the evidence the past several days. Outside court, Parker’s mother told the Daily Press that the decision was “by the grace of God”.

“It’s been a long, long haul, for not a good reason,” she said, noting that her daughter was “a really great educator. A great teacher. A great person to advocate for the kids. That’s what breaks my heart, because these kids need every help they can get.”

Curtis Rogers, an attorney for Parker, said that while his client may have “made a mistake” and had a “lapse in judgement”, she did not commit a crime.

In November last year, Zwerner was awarded $10m in damages after a jury concluded that Parker had ignored warnings that a 9mm gun was on school property and probably in the possession of the boy who shot her.

The boy removed the gun once in his classroom and fired a single bullet at Zwerner, hitting her in her hand and chest. Zwerner subsequently had five hand operations and still has a bullet lodged in her chest.

Zwerner had been seated at a table during a first-grade reading class when the student drew a handgun from his front hoodie pocket and fired the round. The gun, with six bullets left in the magazine, then jammed.