School official ignored warnings of gun before 6-year-old shot teacher, prosecutor says at trial

By Eric Levenson, CNN

(CNN) — Ebony Parker, the former assistant principal of a Virginia elementary school, took no action after hearing multiple warnings from teachers that a 6-year-old student may have a firearm, prosecutors said in opening statements of her criminal trial Tuesday.

“There was only one person in the school that day that had both the authority to act and the knowledge of the ongoing crisis, and that person you will see was Dr. Parker,” Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Josh Jenkins said.

In contrast, Parker’s defense attorney countered that Abby Zwerner, the teacher who was shot by the child, may have had suspicions of a firearm but did not act as if there was an imminent crisis or danger.

“She did not act as if there was a gun present,” defense attorney Curtis Rogers said. “So if she thought there was a gun present, then her actions should have been to separate the child … from his classmates, or separate the classmates from (the child). She didn’t do that.”

The dueling narratives marked the start of Parker’s trial on eight counts of felony child abuse and disregard for life – one for each bullet in the gun the student used. Prosecutors allege she committed “a willful act or omission in the care of such students, in a manner so gross, wanton and culpable as to show a reckless disregard for human life,” according to court documents.

The charges stem from the January 2023 shooting at Richneck Elementary in Newport News, Virginia in which the 6-year-old boy, known as “JT,” brought a gun to school and shot Zwerner, a first-grade teacher, in the chest and hand.

Zwerner survived and took the stand Tuesday as the prosecution’s first witness.

Parker’s criminal trial is one of a number of cases in recent years that have tested the limits of who is responsible when a juvenile carries out a school shooting. Parents in Michigan and Georgia have been convicted of serious charges, while law enforcement officers accused of inaction in Parkland and Uvalde have been acquitted by juries.

Parker appears to be the first school educator to face trial in such circumstances.

Prosecutors allege Parker was aware of the student’s ongoing disciplinary issues, including an attempt to choke his teacher, Susan White, the prior school year. Further, in the hours before the shooting, multiple teachers told Parker the child may have a gun, but Parker took no action and advised against searching the child’s person for a weapon, prosecutors say.

Parker has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Each count is considered a class 6 felony punishable by up to five years in prison. The trial is expected to last about three days.

The boy had taken the unsecured gun from his mother’s purse and brought it to school in his backpack, officials have said.

In the aftermath, several school officials lost their jobs: Parker resigned two weeks after the shooting, the principal was reassigned and the school board voted out the superintendent.

The boy’s mother, Deja Taylor, pleaded guilty to a state charge of felony child neglect and was sentenced to two years in prison in 2023, as well as a 21-month sentence on related federal charges. She was released from state custody to community supervision on May 13, according to the Virginia Department of Corrections.

Prosecutors have said the boy, who has “extreme emotional issues,” will not be criminally charged.

Last November, a civil jury awarded Zwerner $10 million in a lawsuit alleging Parker failed to act on concerns that the student had brought a gun to school. Parker has filed an appeal.

While civil and criminal trials are different, the civil case offered a preview of some of the arguments and testimony likely to come up in the criminal case.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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