A jury in Virginia has awarded $10 million to Abby Zwerner, a former first-grade teacher who was shot by her 6-year-old student at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News in 2023. The jury found that Ebony Parker, the school’s former assistant principal, was grossly negligent for not acting on several warnings that the boy might have brought a gun to class.
The verdict came after just five and a half hours of deliberation, marking a rare case where a school administrator was held personally liable in a civil trial involving a school shooting. This decision raises important questions for insurers and risk managers in public education about coverage and liability, especially when gross negligence is involved.
Parker resigned after the shooting and now faces eight felony child abuse charges in a criminal trial set for later this month. She chose not to testify during the six-day civil trial. Zwerner originally sought $40 million in damages, claiming Parker ignored multiple warnings from teachers that the student was armed. A special grand jury had previously found that Parker was alerted three times on the day of the shooting but failed to take action.
The defense argued that the shooting was unpredictable and suggested that school staff, including Zwerner, could have stepped in to prevent the tragedy. Parker’s lawyer described the shooting as an unimaginable act by such a young child.
The shooting happened around 2 p.m. on January 6, 2023, when the student pulled a 9mm handgun from his jacket and shot Zwerner in the hand. The bullet ended up near her spine. Since then, Zwerner has undergone six surgeries and deals with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Before the civil trial, a judge dismissed the Newport News School Board’s claim that Zwerner’s injuries should be covered only by workers’ compensation. The judge ruled that a shooting by a student is not a typical job hazard, allowing Zwerner’s lawsuit to move forward.
The school board was dropped as a defendant earlier this year and plans to appeal the verdict. Though no insurance company has been publicly named, experts say the school district uses a state-run risk pool that protects public entities. This self-insurance system, common in Virginia, covers school boards and municipalities.
If the award stands, it will likely come from this risk pool. However, whether coverage applies when gross negligence is involved remains uncertain and may become a key issue in future legal discussions.
The case highlights the challenges schools face in handling violence and the legal risks administrators may carry. For Newport News and public schools across the country, the financial and legal fallout from this case is just beginning.