American Military News by Peter Dujardin 11/6/2023
A Newport News Circuit Court judge ruled Friday that the first grade teacher shot by a 6-year-old student at Richneck Elementary School in January can proceed with her $40 million lawsuit against the school division.
In the ruling, Judge Matthew W. Hoffman said Abigail Zwerner, 25, is not limited to filing a workers’ compensation claim, as attorneys for the Newport News School Board and other defendants asserted.
“The Court finds the injury suffered by Plaintiff did not arise out of her employment,” Hoffman wrote in the eight-page decision. The defendants’ plea to toss the case, he wrote, “is denied.”
Under longstanding Virginia law, claims stemming from a workplace injury are resolved exclusively by the Workers’ Compensation Act, with such workers barred from pursuing claims through personal injury lawsuits. If she filed such a claim, Zwerner could collect two-thirds of her teacher’s pay — tax free — for nine years and eight months, plus lifetime medical benefits.
But Zwerner’s attorneys contend that getting shot by a student in her classroom isn’t reasonably seen as a workplace hazard. Not only would no teacher have anticipated getting shot by a student, they said, but the shooting itself was directed at Zwerner in particular. They want damages to be determined by a Circuit Court jury or a negotiated settlement.
Zwerner’s lawyers applauded Hoffman’s ruling.
“This victory is an important stepping stone on our path towards justice for Abby,” attorneys Diane Toscano, Jeffrey Breit and Kevin Biniazan wrote in a statement. “We are eager to continue our pursuit of accountability and a just, fair recovery. No teacher expects to stare down the barrel of a gun held by a 6-year-old student.”
The Newport News School Board and other defendants are expected to appeal, and the case could end up before the state Supreme Court. Such an appeal could significantly delay the scheduling of a trial. In fact, the docket shows the seven-day jury trial isn’t scheduled until January 2025.
“Obviously we’re surprised about this, and we disagree with the ruling,” said Anne Lahren, an attorney for the School Board, releasing a statement on behalf of the board and two other defendants, former Superintendent George Parker III and former Richneck Principal Brianna Foster Newton.
“A teacher being injured at the hands of a student” is “unfortunately … a fairly common occurrence and one that is only increasing in frequency this day and age,” Lahren wrote. Though Hoffman ruled the shooting stemmed from a personal issue the child had with Zwerner, “it is clear that the student and Ms. Zwerner only knew each other through their teacher-student relationship.”
More:
https://americanmilitarynews.com/2023/11/va-teacher-shot-by-6-year-old-student-can-sue-school-district-judge-rules/
