Virginia school administrators knew boy possibly had gun before shooting teacher: superintendent

Administrators at Virginia's Richneck Elementary, the school where a first-grader shot his teacher last week, learned that the 6-year-old may have had a weapon in his possession before the shooting – but didn't seize the 9mm handgun he brought to his classroom. 

During a virtual meeting, school system Superintendent George Parker told parents Thursday that a school official had been notified about the weapon before the student shot the teacher.

"At least one administrator was notified of a possible weapon in the timeline that we’re reviewing and was aware that that student had, there was a potential that there was a weapon on campus," he said, according to a clip of the meeting shared by WAVY-TV. 

Michelle Price, a spokesperson for the Newport News public school district, told Fox News Digital in an emailed statement that the boy's backpack had been searched after it was reported the student might have a weapon, but that no weapon was found at that point.

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"Dr. Parker did not indicate how the tip was received," she said.

The online meeting was for parents only but WAVY-TV reported the station gained access to the meeting from a parent.

Details about how they learned about the weapon and why it wasn't found before the shooting weren't immediately available. 

Police previously said the boy had brought the gun to the Newport News school in his backpack.

Teacher Abby Zwerner was shot in the chest. While her injuries were initially considered to be life-threatening, her condition has improved and she was reported to be in stable condition.

No students were injured during this incident.

The Jan. 6 shooting occurred as Zwerner was teaching her class, with authorities saying there was no warning or struggle before the boy aimed the gun at the 25-year-old teacher.

Police Chief Steve Drew has described the shooting as intentional and the boy is being held at a medical facility following an emergency custody order.

A judge will determine what's next. 

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The gun he used was his mother's and had been purchased legally. It remains unclear how he accessed the weapon. 

"We will continue to work with authorities to review what has transpired and most importantly learn from this experience. A six-year old student with access to a weapon brought that item to his first-grade classroom. There are many concerns that we will need to unpack before we will be able to determine if any additional preventive measures would have impacted the probability of this incident occurring. In addition to assessing our established safety procedures, we will need the support of our community to significantly reduce the likelihood of a child or young adult gaining access to a weapon," Parker said in a statement.

"The safety of our students and staff remains our greatest priority. We are in this together and our continued efforts will yield the greatest impact on school safety," he said.

A Virginia law prohibits leaving a loaded gun where it is accessible to a child under 14 as a misdemeanor.

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Earlier in the day, Newport News School Board Chair Lisa Surles-Law said the district would install metal detectors at all schools, starting with Richneck.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.