Following an altercation in the classroom, a six-year-old kid is in police jail for allegedly shooting a teacher in the stomach, leaving her with life-threatening injuries.

The police chief of Newport News, a city in the eastern state of Virginia, stated, "This was not an accidental shooting."

Abigail Zwerner, 25 years old, is in stable condition following Friday's event at Richneck Elementary School.

It was unknown how the toddler obtained the firearm. "It's still an active and fluid investigation. A police spokeswoman said, "We are working around the clock."

Since 1970, there have been 16 school shootings in the United States where the culprit was younger than ten.

Regardless of the severity of the offense, a six-year-old child cannot be charged as an adult under Virginia law.

Even if prosecuted in juvenile court, the minimum age for placement in juvenile detention is 11.

Andrew Block, a professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, stated, "The juvenile justice system is not really equipped to deal with very young children who commit criminal offenses and is probably the wrong place to handle this situation."

In the past 17 months, this was the third school shooting in the Newport News area. Two 17-year-olds were injured in September 2021 after a 16-year-old opened fire during a school lunch break.

Then, three months later, 17-year-old Justice Dunham was fatally shot by 18-year-old Demari Batten in the Menchville High School parking lot.

Friday at 2:00 p.m., an incident occurred at the Richneck school, although few details are known. Ms. Zwerner reportedly screamed for the children to get to safety after being shot.

Sebastian Gonzalez-Hernandez stated that his child was in class at the time.

"My son did not see what occurred; he heard the gunshot and turned around to see Ms. Zwerner lying on the ground. "She is an extraordinary and devoted educator," he remarked.

According to the grandmother of another student, the juvenile shooter took bullets to school the week prior and stated he would bring a gun.

She said the school was informed of the occurrence but took no action.

Daniel Smith, a resident of Newport News, a city of 180,000 with a significant shipyard and military installation, described his neighborhood as peaceful. Nobody bothers everyone other, and everyone looks out for one another.

The shooting rekindled calls for stricter gun restrictions restricting children's firearms access.

In Virginia, it is prohibited to leave a loaded firearm in a way that would risk the life or limb of a minor younger than 14.

However, activists characterized the state's legislation as inadequate. According to Allison Anderman, senior counsel at the Giffords Statute Center to Prevent Gun Violence, "Virginia's law is on the weaker end of the spectrum of these types of laws."

An estimated 4.6 million youngsters in the United States reside in households with at least one unlocked handgun.