VA- 6-YEAR-OLD is in custody after shooting teacher

[Stunned]

Maybe the gun was in the backpack or the child's possession, but the person who says they searched for it- didn't. MOO

Why lie with everything going on about guns in schools? I hope that call wasn’t ignored!

 

[MissUnderstood]

The gun should never have been in the house for a child to access. If I lived in a country where kids bags are searched for weapons I’d have my kids out of school. It is not normal. It should not happen. Something is very very wrong that this keeps happening and nothing changes.

 

[fred&edna]

Are public school officials required to report student weapon searches to law enforcement?

 

[Shamrock1]

The problem with "emotionally disturbed" children, is that if the child meets the eligibility for an IEP, the school can't send the child to a higher level of care, ie, inpatient, until either there is enough data or severe manifestation of inappropriate behavior to send him to "behavior school". It takes an incident like this or injuring students to justify it.

In addition, schools for children who cannot safely remain in public school are extremely expensive. Day schools often range from 60-90k/year. School districts foot the bill if the only way to provide the constitutionally-required “free and appropriate” education is to send the child out-of-district. Thus, there has to be very strong proof that public school with support (aides, IEP, self-contained classrooms) is inadequate - many parents who believe their child is entitled to be sent out-of-district need an education attorney to handle the process. JMO.

 

[fred&edna]

The gun should never have been in the house for a child to access. If I lived in a country where kids bags are searched for weapons I’d have my kids out of school. It is not normal. It should not happen. Something is very very wrong that this keeps happening and nothing changes.

We will likely run out of teachers before we run out of guns.

I admire anyone who "wants" to teach in our public schools.

 

[Simply Southern]

Are public school officials required to report student weapon searches to law enforcement?

They are required to report illegal activities, threats, assault and more. I posted links up thread. After an incident in Northern VA, a very specific law was passed making it a requirement, as of July 2022.

A lot of parents and grandparents have eyes on this situation. Our leaders have worked hard over the last two years to put additional safeguards, laws in place. I, as many, are scratching out heads, saying ...how can this happen?

MOO...

 

[shotgun09]

Are public school officials required to report student weapon searches to law enforcement?

From a previously posted article, and bolded by me:

"A spokeswoman for the Newport News police said that authorities also determined through their ongoing investigation that "a school employee was notified of a possible firearm at Richneck Elementary before the shooting occurred. The Newport News Police Department was not notified of this information prior to the incident."

Backpack of 6-year-old boy was searched prior to Virginia school shooting after tip about weapon

The schools superintendent in Newport News provided additional details of the Jan. 6 shooting, which left a first-grade teacher hospitalized with injuries to her hand and chest.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[airportwoman]

The problem with "emotionally disturbed" children, is that if the child meets the eligibility for an IEP, the school can't send the child to a higher level of care, ie, inpatient, until either there is enough data or severe manifestation of inappropriate behavior to send him to "behavior school". It takes an incident like this or injuring students to justify it.

I grew up in a neighborhood that had (and still does) a facility for "emotionally disturbed children" that opened in the 1960s. The higher-functioning kids went to school with us, and a lot of the time, we couldn't tell that was where they were from until they told us. Most of them had been in and out of the foster care system since birth, although there are two who really stand out (this was in the 1970s) who were almost certainly on the autistic spectrum.

One thing I definitely remember, that ALL of them had in common, was that no matter how intelligent they were, their school performances always several grades behind where they should have been. Like, 5th graders who were still trying to figure out how to add single-digit numbers, that kind of thing.

A Facebook friend, a HS classmate, had to send her son there as a teenager; he and his sister were adopted out of foster care when they were IIRC 4 and 7. (I almost posted more details, but they could identify them; I'll say that the kids appear to be doing well now.)

 

[airportwoman]

.. a 4 year old can’t even spell words to type internet searches. I have a 7 year old boy and he is very smart. He plays video games and has a tablet and has a high level of understanding how to operate electronics. And although he can spell, even he wouldn’t know how to get online and cruise the internet. You’re exactly right everything at that young of an age is shown and taught. And with all due respect to the poster you responded to.. toddlers aren’t manipulative. The toddler in your family isn’t manipulative and bad. Toddlers, children all need structure, consistency and love. Even the way you allow your child to have emotions and feel safe in expressing those emotions.To feel safe, to be shown patience. When those things aren’t provided kids usually push boundaries which can look like “just being bad”. This case hurts my heart. For the teacher, the other kids who saw this happen, their parents, everyone in the schools community, and this 6 year old boy. Who was probably dealing with a feeling he had the way he sees the adults around him deal with feelings, physically rather than with his words, aggressively and violently.

30 years ago, when my friend was a foster care caseworker, she could never get over how much those little kids always knew about (edited) X-rated things, sex toys, and drug paraphernalia, and that was BEFORE the Internet was in common use! I can't even imagine what it's like now.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

My opinions and speculation only:
Maybe someone in the home realized the gun was missing and notified the school. Perhaps the drawer it was in was open, shoebox left out, or something along those lines, and they saw this and called the school or called someone else who called the school.

Why was the school's policy not to immediately bring the child into an office etc. until a legal parent or guardian came to inspect the backpack and the child himself? Why was there no policy preventing him from remaining in class?

I'm shocked the school was notified but this still happened.

 

[shotgun09]

A school staffer searched the backpack of a Virginia 6-year-old before shooting. Now, the school will install metal detectors | CNN

Richneck Elementary School in Virginia will install walk-through metal detectors after officials were alerted last week that a 6-year-old student who allegedly shot his teacher might have had a weapon but failed to find it after a search.

www.cnn.com

" The decision to install metal detectors was announced by Newport News School Board Chairperson Lisa R. Surles-Law in a press conference Thursday.


The school board requested the metal detectors for Richneck immediately to get the students back in the building, Surles-Law said. The school has been closed since the shooting."



IMO, <modsnip: no source for info posted as fact>, and the school for allowing (who?) to 'search' the boy's backpack ( did they search him), but NOT inform police of the call...NOW they want metal detectors? Just who is going to operate, and act when the alarm goes off on the machine? Trust?? Nope MOO

 

[sds71]

• Classes at Richneck have been canceled for next week. There is still no set return date for students and staff

'I know she is a hero' | Newport News Police Chief discusses Richneck shooting

In an interview with ABC News, Police Chief Steve Drew said amidst all the questions, he knows one thing for certain-- Abby Zwerner is a hero.

www.13newsnow.com

 

[FunkyMonkey]

.. a 4 year old can’t even spell words to type internet searches. I have a 7 year old boy and he is very smart. He plays video games and has a tablet and has a high level of understanding how to operate electronics. And although he can spell, even he wouldn’t know how to get online and cruise the internet. You’re exactly right everything at that young of an age is shown and taught. And with all due respect to the poster you responded to.. toddlers aren’t manipulative. The toddler in your family isn’t manipulative and bad. Toddlers, children all need structure, consistency and love. Even the way you allow your child to have emotions and feel safe in expressing those emotions.To feel safe, to be shown patience. When those things aren’t provided kids usually push boundaries which can look like “just being bad”. This case hurts my heart. For the teacher, the other kids who saw this happen, their parents, everyone in the schools community, and this 6 year old boy. Who was probably dealing with a feeling he had the way he sees the adults around him deal with feelings, physically rather than with his words, aggressively and violently.

Many of them are smarter than you might think. Kids know how to tap the microphone button and speak what they want to search. moo

 

[TGIRecovered]

The police should have been notified by the school admin immediately; the child should have been held in the office with proper supervision. The backpack, coat, and boots should have been in a separate secure area until a real police officer arrived to make a safe, properly documented, and video-recorded search. This would have included a search of any other item that could conceal a weapon and the general area accessible to the child in case he stashed it. Most schools have a school resource officer ( a regular cop, not a security person) assigned to cover their campus. Some SROs may cover more than one campus but should have been readily available for this type of issue. MOO

There is an epidemic of school administrators whose regular policy is NOT to call the police if they think they can handle a situation without it becoming public knowledge. I've seen it in my city on numerous occasions over the years, and we read about it when it happens elsewhere. MOO

Just like in any position of authority, there will always be bad apples that let it go to their heads. We don't need that type in school administration or any other profession that holds our children's lives in their hands. MOO

 

[Stunned]

I wonder if the age of the child didn’t play into the gun protocol at the school?

 

[shotgun09]

BBM, From a parent of a Richneck School student:

"News 3 talked to parents about the reality of metal detectors being installed.

"Metal detectors at an elementary school? Metal detectors at schools are crazy" said Taniesha Cable a Richneck Parent. "How does a 6-year-old have access to a weapon and know how to use it? That troubles me. This is an elementary school. You would never imagine an elementary school and then everyone sit talking about putting metal detectors in." "

Metal detectors to be installed in all Newport News schools

The Newport News School Board is holding a press conference to issue a statement about the shooting at Richneck Elementary School.

www.wtkr.com

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

The police should have been notified by the school admin immediately; the child should have been held in the office with proper supervision. The backpack, coat, and boots should have been in a separate secure area until a real police officer arrived to make a safe, properly documented, and video-recorded search. This would have included a search of any other item that could conceal a weapon and the general area accessible to the child in case he stashed it. Most schools have a school resource officer ( a regular cop, not a security person) assigned to cover their campus. Some SROs may cover more than one campus but should have been readily available for this type of issue. MOO

There is an epidemic of school administrators whose regular policy is NOT to call the police if they think they can handle a situation without it becoming public knowledge. I've seen it in my city on numerous occasions over the years, and we read about it when it happens elsewhere. MOO

Just like in any position of authority, there will always be bad apples that let it go to their heads. We don't need that type in school administration or any other profession that holds our children's lives in their hands. MOO

This is precisely what happened in the case of Ethan Crumbley at Oxford High School in Oakland County, MI. Ethan and his parents were actually sitting in an office with school administrator/s and no one asked to search the boy's backpack that was right there with him! Had school personnel (or Ethan's parents) searched his backpack, the gun would have been discovered, and four students' lives would have been spared.

GUILTY - MI - 4 students killed, 6 injured, Oxford High School shooting, 30 Nov 2021 *Arrest incl parents* *teen guilty* #4

O/T - Related. https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/oakland-county/2022/12/20/oakland-county-deputy-sheriffs-association-oxford-memorial-scholarship-fund/69744714007/ A memorial scholarship fund for students who were enrolled at Oxford High School the day of the 2021 attack was...

www.websleuths.com

 

[shotgun09]

Virginia school searched 1st-grader's backpack before teacher shot

Abigail Zwerner, 25, was shot in the chest last week and is reported to be in stable condition.

www.10tv.com

"The shooting has sparked an outcry around the country about how a child so young could have gained access to a gun and brought it to school. News of the unsuccessful backpack search also raised questions.

Mo Canady, executive director of the National Association of School Resource Officers, said that while details are still outstanding about how the search was conducted, the situation underscores the need to search very thoroughly and preferably have a law enforcement officer handle it.

“I want to know how thoroughly someone conducted that search,” he said. “Keep in mind that there are some very small firearms out there, so you really have to search every nook and cranny if you really believe there is a firearm.”

 

[chipwhitley]

I wouldn't feel comfortable sending my child back to that school, and I wouldn't feel comfortable teaching there either. So I wonder how many children and teachers will not want to return to that school when it does open again, even with the new administration and metal detectors.

 

[patrickthomas11]

After a Virginia teacher was injured in an elementary classroom shooting, a 6-year-old is in custody.