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‘Shocking’ failures led to shooting of Richneck teacher by 6-year-old

Published

2 years ago

April 10, 2024

‘Shocking’ failures led to shooting of Richneck teacher by 6-year-old

A 6-year-old boy who shot and wounded a teacher in Southeast Virginia last year had previously choked a different teacher and should have been unenrolled from the school, but lapses by administrators allowed him back on campus, according to a special grand jury report released Thursday.

The breakdown was one of a series of glaring discipline issues, security failures and ignored warnings that allowed the boy to sneak a weapon inside Richneck Elementary School in Newport News and open fire on Abigail Zwerner, a first-grade teacher, the special grand jury concluded.

The 11-member panel also suggested a criminal probe of a high-ranking member of the Newport News School District for obstructing the investigation into the high-profile shooting, after key pieces of evidence — the boy’s disciplinary files — went missing.

The special grand jury reserved its harshest judgments for Richneck’s former assistant principal, Ebony Parker, who it found was warned three times on the day of the shooting that the boy had a weapon but failed to do anything.

“Dr. Parker’s lack of response and initiative given the seriousness of the information she had received on Jan. 6, 2023 is shocking,” the panel wrote in its 24-page report.

The special grand jury was empaneled by Newport News Commonwealth’s Attorney Howard E. Gwynn to examine whether any security lapses that contributed to the shooting last year that left Zwerner grievously wounded, captured national attention and led to the ouster of the school superintendent.

The report was made public one day after the special grand jury’s indictment against Parker was unsealed. Parker is facing eight counts of child abuse, possibly the first time an administrator has been charged in the handling of a school shooting, experts said.

Gwynn’s office has declined to comment on what prompted the charges, but a $40 million lawsuit brought by Zwerner claims Parker ignored several warnings by teachers and other staff that the boy had a gun on the day of the shooting.

Parker’s attorney has not responded to requests for comment, but has denied Zwerner’s allegations in a response to her lawsuit filed in court. Parker is scheduled to appear in Newport News Circuit Court on Thursday morning. She resigned from Richneck after the shooting.

The incident began when the 6-year-old took his mother’s gun from her purse on the top of her dresser and brought it to school in his backpack on Jan. 6, 2023.

Zwerner’s lawsuit claims she had warned Parker that day that the boy was in a “violent mood” and threatened to beat up a kindergartner, but that Parker did nothing. Zwerner claims it was one of several moments that Parker might have intervened to prevent the shooting.

Later that day, two students told a reading specialist that the boy had said he had a gun, according to the lawsuit. The reading specialist questioned the boy, but he denied having a gun and wouldn’t let the teacher search his backpack.

During the recess that followed, Zwerner told the reading specialist she thought she saw the boy pull something from his backpack and put it in his pocket, according to the lawsuit. The reading specialist searched the boy’s backpack but did not find the weapon. The reading specialist then told Parker that students had relayed to her that the boy had a gun.

Zwerner’s lawsuit claims a student told another teacher that the boy had shown the classmate a gun on the playground at recess. The teacher also got the information to Parker through an intermediary.

Shortly before the shooting, a guidance counselor asked Parker to search the boy for a gun, but she denied his request, according to Zwerner’s lawsuit. The boy pulled out the gun and fired a single shot at her, striking her hand and chest.

Zwerner was taken to the hospital and a teacher restrained the boy.

Deja Taylor, the boy’s mother, was convicted of firearms violations and child neglect in federal and state courts after the shooting. Taylor admitted to lying about her marijuana use on her background check to purchase the gun and failing to keep the weapon from her son. She is currently serving out prison terms.

Gwynn empaneled the special grand jury in April 2023, asking it to probe “any actions or omissions by current or former employees of the Newport News School System which may have contributed to this shooting.”

The panel began taking testimony in September. It heard from 19 witnesses, amassed hundreds of pages of documents obtained videos to compile its report. Under Virginia law, special grand juries have broad powers to investigate.

News

Map: Earthquake Shakes Central California

Published

32 minutes ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Map: Earthquake Shakes Central California

Note: Map shows the area with a shake intensity of 3 or greater, which U.S.G.S. defines as “weak,” though the earthquake may be felt outside the areas shown. All times on the map are Pacific time. The New York Times

A minor earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 3.5 struck in Central California on Monday, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The temblor happened at 7:17 a.m. Pacific time about 6 miles northwest of Pinnacles, Calif., data from the agency shows.

As seismologists review available data, they may revise the earthquake’s reported magnitude. Additional information collected about the earthquake may also prompt U.S.G.S. scientists to update the shake-severity map.

Source: United States Geological Survey | Notes: Shaking categories are based on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale. When aftershock data is available, the corresponding maps and charts include earthquakes within 100 miles and seven days of the initial quake. All times above are Pacific time. Shake data is as of Monday, March 2 at 10:20 a.m. Eastern. Aftershocks data is as of Monday, March 2 at 11:18 a.m. Eastern.

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US says Kuwait accidentally shot down 3 American jets

Published

3 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

US says Kuwait accidentally shot down 3 American jets

The U.S. and Israel have been conducting strikes against targets in Iran since Saturday morning, with the aim of toppling Tehran’s clerical regime. Iran has fired back, with retaliatory assaults featuring missiles and drones targeting several Gulf countries and American bases in the Middle East.

“All six aircrew ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition. Kuwait has acknowledged this incident, and we are grateful for the efforts of the Kuwaiti defense forces and their support in this ongoing operation,” Central Command said.

“The cause of the incident is under investigation. Additional information will be released as it becomes available,” it added.

In a separate statement later Monday, Central Command said that American forces had been killed during combat since the strikes began.

“As of 7:30 am ET, March 2, four U.S. service members have been killed in action. The fourth service member, who was seriously wounded during Iran’s initial attacks, eventually succumbed to their injuries,” it said.

Major combat operations continue and our response effort is ongoing. The identities of the fallen are being withheld until 24 hours after next of kin notification,” Central Command added.

This story has been updated.

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Satellite images provide view inside Iran at war

Published

15 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Satellite images provide view inside Iran at war

Smoke rises over Konarak naval base in southern Iran on Sunday. The base was one of hundreds of targets of U.S. and Israeli forces throughout the country.

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Commercial satellite images are providing a unique look at the extent of damage being done to Iran’s military facilities across the country.

The U.S. and Israeli military campaign opened with a daytime attack that struck Iranian leadership in central Tehran. Smoke was still visible rising from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s compound following the attack that killed the supreme leader.

An image by the company Airbus taken on Saturday shows the aftermath of an Israeli strike on Iran’s Leadership House in central Tehran. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the opening wave of attacks.

Pléiades Neo (c) Airbus DS 2026

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Pléiades Neo (c) Airbus DS 2026

Israel and the U.S. have gone on to strike targets across the country. Reports on social media indicate that there have been numerous military bases and compounds attacked all over Iran, and Iran has responded with attacks throughout the Middle East.

U.S. forces have also been striking at Iran’s navy. In a post on his social media platform, President Trump said that he had been briefed that U.S. forces had sunk nine Iranian naval vessels. U.S. Central Command did not immediately confirm that number but it did say it had struck an Iranian warship in port.

An image captured on February 28 shows a ship burning at Iran's naval base at Konarak.

An image captured on Saturday shows a ship burning at Iran’s naval base at Konarak.

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Numerous satellite images show burning vessels at Konarak naval base in southern Iran. Images also show damage to a nearby airbase where hardened hangers were struck by precision munitions.

Hardened aircraft shelters at Konarak airbase were struck with precision munitions.

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And there was extensive damage at a drone base in the same area. Iran has launched numerous drones and missiles toward Israel and U.S. military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. Many drones have been intercepted but videos on social media show that some have evaded air defenses and caused damage in nearby Gulf countries. In Dubai, debris from an Iranian drone damaged the iconic Burj Al Arab, according to a statement from Dubai’s government.

Buildings at an Iranian drone base at Konarak were destroyed in the strikes.

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Iran’s most powerful weapons are its long-range missiles. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards have hidden the missiles deep inside mountain tunnels. Images taken Sunday in the mountains of northern Iran indicate that some of those tunnels were hit in a wave of strikes.

Following Khamenei’s death, Iran declared 40 days of mourning. Satellite images showed mourners gathering in Tehran’s Enghelab square on Sunday.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told NPR on Sunday that Iran will continue to fight “foreign aggression, foreign domination.”

A White House official told NPR that Trump plans to talk to Iran’s interim leadership “eventually,” but that for now, U.S. operations continue in the region “unabated.”

A large crowd of mourners fill Enghelab Square in Tehran on Sunday, following the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike.

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