Abigail Zwerner, the Virginia teacher who was shot by her six-year-old student in 2023, gave a heartbreaking testimony this week in her ongoing lawsuit against former assistant principal Ebony Parker.
Zwerner described the moments after the shooting, saying she thought she was dying. The bullet went through her hand and into her chest as she was teaching her first-grade class. She recalled the shock and fear, saying, “I thought I was on my way to heaven, but then it all got black.”
The $40 million lawsuit accuses Parker of ignoring multiple warnings that the boy might have brought a gun to school that day. Zwerner’s legal team claims Parker failed to act despite being told the child was in a “violent mood.” Parker’s defense argues that no one could have predicted that a six-year-old would shoot their teacher.
Since the shooting, Zwerner has undergone multiple surgeries and still struggles with basic tasks like opening a water bottle or a bag of crisps. She told the court she feels distant from the people she loves and continues to process the trauma.
Parker faces a separate criminal trial with eight counts of felony child neglect, which could lead to prison time. The student’s mother has already been sentenced to nearly four years for neglect and federal weapons charges.
The boy, who was not charged, now lives with a relative and attends a different school.
