By Erik Ortiz and Antonio Planas -
NBC News
The teacher who was shot by a 6-year-old student at a Virginia school notified a loved one by message before the boy was armed, alerting that those responsible for the school center were not acting to take it away and avoid a misfortune, according to a source close to the case to NBC News.
Abigail Zwerner, 25, contacted her relative an hour before she was shot on January 6;
she was seriously injured in the chest and in one hand.
The message "showed her frustration," said the aforementioned source, "she was frustrated because she was trying to get help for this child, and then, when she needed help, nobody gave it to her," she denounced the address of Richneck Elementary School, in the city of Newport News.
Abigail Zwerner, the teacher shot by a six-year-old student.Abigail Zwerner via Facebook
[The teacher's attorney, Diane Toscano, explained Tuesday at a press conference that on the day of the shooting, teachers and school employees alerted administrators three times that the boy had a weapon and was threatening others. students, according to The Associated Press news agency.
"The Administration didn't bother" to act, added the lawyer, who plans to sue the school district.
The superintendent admitted days ago that administrators were tipped off that the boy was armed, but they searched his book bag and found no gun.]
The spokeswoman for the local public schools, Michelle Price, said for her part that both the message sent by Zwerner to his relative, as well as the concerns related to security measures expressed by other teachers at the center "are part" of the investigation. "in depth" about what happened.
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A police spokeswoman confirmed that, indeed, "a school employee was notified of a possible firearm at the school before the shooting occurred," but stressed that the department "was not notified of it prior to the incident. ".
Authorities have not released information about the person who carried out the search, whether the minor's clothing was examined, or possible reasons why the weapon was not found.
They have praised the heroics of Zwerner, who was released from the hospital last week for protecting and safely carrying her 20 first-graders out of a classroom while still injured.
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“I think it saved lives, because I don't know what else might have happened if those kids had stayed in that class,” Police Chief Steve Drew said at a news conference in early January.
The Washington Post reported last week that school officials dismissed warnings about the student prior to the incident, despite repeated pleas for help.
School staff told the superintendent that Zwerner had requested assistance with the student "multiple times" throughout the course, according to messages obtained by the newspaper, which could not be independently verified by NBC News.
The messages do not indicate who the teacher asked for help.
Another teacher detailed in a message obtained by the aforementioned newspaper the disturbing behavior of the student that preceded the shooting, although the date on which it supposedly happened is unknown.
The authorities have not announced publicly whether they are considering filing charges against the minor or his parents.
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The police chief explained that the boy's mother legally purchased the firearm used in the shooting, a 9mm Taurus model, and that the boy took it from his home.
but the investigation is trying to determine if it was well stored, he said.
The boy's family said last week that the gun was "secured" when the boy took it from his home, but declined to elaborate.
"Our family has always been committed to responsible gun ownership and keeping them out of the reach of children," said the statement released by his attorney, James Ellenson.
It added that the child "suffers from an acute disability and was under a care plan at school that included his mother or father attending school with him and accompanying him to class every day." "Our son has benefited from a extensive care community that also includes his grandparents, who work alongside us and other caregivers to ensure his needs and accommodations are met," they added, "the week of the shooting was the first week we weren't in class with him. We will regret our absence that day for the rest of our lives."
Since the shooting, the statement added, the boy has been in a hospital receiving the "treatment he needs." The school has remained closed since the shooting, although it is scheduled to reopen on Monday and be equipped with a metal detector, they announced. The district will pay for 90 state-of-the-art metal detectors for all schools in the district, where there have been at least three cases of gun violence in 17 months.