A Virginia elementary school teacher is in critical condition after she was shot by a 6-year-old boy, officials in Newport News said Friday.
City officials said the shooting was not accidental. The student began arguing with the teacher in a first-grade classroom, then pulled out the gun and fired a single shot, according to WVEC.
The teacher’s injuries were life-threatening, officials said. She was said to be in her 30s.
Richneck Elementary School was put on lockdown at about 2 p.m. as police responded, and the lockdown was lifted at about 3:20 p.m., as CrimeOnline previously reported.
The 6-year-old is in custody, officials said. He was taken into custody immediately after the shooting, and no other students or staff were injured.
“The individual is a 6-year-old student. He is right now in police custody,” Police Chief Steve Drew said, according to CNN. “We have been in contact with our commonwealth attorney and some other entities to help us best get services to this young man.”
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The chief said there was “some improvement in the last update that we got” on the teacher’s condition.
“It’s a dark day for Newport News,” the city’s new mayor, Phillip Jones, told reporters, according to WVEC. “We’re going to learn from this and we’re going to come back stronger.”
Newport News School Superintendent George Parker III said officials were making sure services were available to students and staff after the shooting and that classes would not be held on Monday.
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[Featured image: Students and police gather outside of Richneck Elementary School after a shooting on January 6, 2023 in Newport News, Virginia. (Billy Schuerman/The Virginian-Pilot via AP)]
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