6-Year-Old Who Shot Virginia Teacher Not Criminally Charged, Sent to Psychiatric Facility

A 6-year-old Virginia boy who shot his teacher in January 2023, and was later heard yelling profanities at responding officers, will not face criminal charges. Instead, the boy, identified by officials as J.T., has been ordered to spend 227 days in inpatient psychiatric confinement.

The shooting occurred at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News when J.T. fired a 9 mm handgun at his first-grade teacher, Abby Zwerner, striking her in the chest and hand. Zwerner was in her classroom with 16 students present at the time of the incident.

Newly released police bodycam footage shows J.T. swearing at officers shortly after the shooting. In the video, a school reading specialist, Amy Kovac, is seen restraining the boy while he yells, “Both y’all want a f–king piece of me, b—h?!” and other expletives. J.T. stated that he had taken the gun from his mother’s purse earlier that day.

Kovac is heard in the footage mentioning previous disciplinary issues with the child, noting that he had been on a modified schedule and his mother was to pick him up early. This was reportedly his first week at school without his mother accompanying him.

J.T.’s mother, Deja Nicole Taylor, 29, was later sentenced to nearly two years in prison after pleading guilty to state felony child neglect and federal gun charges. Her federal charge stemmed partly from lying about using marijuana on a background check form when she purchased the firearm used in the shooting. Court documents revealed that the boy had a history of behavioral issues, including taking his mother’s car without permission on two occasions when he was five years old, one of which resulted in a crash.

Details emerged about prior incidents involving Taylor and the boy's father, Malik Ellison. A month before the school shooting, Taylor reportedly fired the same handgun during an argument with Ellison. Taylor had also filed restraining orders against Ellison, accusing him of physical abuse.

As of January 2024, J.T. was in the care of his great-grandfather, Calvin Taylor, who maintained that the child was a victim of systemic failures. "He was a victim before that date," Calvin Taylor stated, expressing that social services had not adequately helped the boy. He added that while his granddaughter, Deja Taylor, attempted to seek help, there was a lack of follow-up after a safety plan was implemented following a previous car incident.

Calvin Taylor indicated that J.T. was performing well academically at a new school and understood the gravity of his actions. "I’m grateful that I have an opportunity to spend time with him daily and that I have an opportunity to watch him grow up as a young man without a lot of baggage. I’m also grateful that he understands that it was an egregious mistake and that he’s not going to be defined by that mistake," he said in a January 2024 interview.