Six-year-old shoots teacher - mother has to go to prison
In the case of a first-grader who shot and seriously injured his teacher at a US elementary school, the boy's mother has been sentenced to prison.
A court in the US state of Virginia handed down a 21-month prison sentence because the woman lied about her marijuana use when buying a gun, among other things, reported the Washington Post. The mid-20-year-old had previously pleaded guilty. Her then six-year-old son later fired the gun at his teacher.
The boy had taken the gun to school in Newport News at the beginning of the year and shot his teacher in the chest. The 25-year-old suffered life-threatening injuries. No one else was injured. According to the police, the teacher was able to get all the pupils out of the classroom. She later sued the school for millions in damages in civil proceedings. The proceedings are still ongoing.
The mother of the now seven-year-old boy is also accused by the public prosecutor's office of neglecting her child. Sentencing for this charge is expected in December. Incidents at schools involving such young shooters are rare, even in the USA. The events in Newport News underscore the ongoing threat of gun violence at schools in the US.
The mother's prison sentence highlights the serious consequences of purchasing weapons while concealing information, such as marijuana use. Unfortunately, this incident involving a six-year-old shooting his teacher in a school demonstrated the potential for weapons to lead to crime, even in early education settings.
Source: www.dpa.com
