Virginia 6-year-old who shot Richneck Elementary teacher has ADHD: mother

A 6-year-old Virginia boy who shot and wounded his first grade teacher is diagnosed with ADHD and his mother believes his violent behavior could be linked to the disorder.

Abigail Zwerner was teaching a class of first-graders at Richneck Elementary on January 6 when a student pulled out a gun and shot her in the chest. She filed a $40 million lawsuit in April against both the Newport News School District and Richneck officials, alleging they ignored warnings about the boy, including that he had a gun the day of the shooting.

The firearm in question, a 9 mm handgun, belonged to the student’s mother, Deja Taylor. She is facing a felony count of child neglect and a misdemeanor count of recklessly leaving a firearm as to endanger a child, prosecutors said. She was released on $5,000 bond and her bench trial is set for Aug. 15.

“I am, as a parent, obviously willing to take responsibility for him because he can’t take responsibility” for himself, Taylor said during a new interview with ABC News.

Her lawyer, James Ellenson, has maintained his client had the gun stashed in a safe place and that she does not know how her son got ahold of the weapon. He also pointed a finger at school officials for advancing the boy to first grade despite the fact that he was unprepared.

Taylor went on to describe her son as a “great kid” and acknowledged his high energy levels, but stopped short of describing him as violent or volatile as Zwerner has.

“He’s off the wall,” the mother said, adding that he is “very energetic” because of his ADHD. “Doesn’t sit still, ever.”

Taylor also emphasized that her son really “really liked” having Zwerner as his teacher.

“He was more attentive, he tried to follow along, he tried to do the coursework,” Calvin Taylor, the boy’s great-grandfather, said in the same interview. “But in all fairness to the other kids in the class, sometimes it was just too much for him.”

He added that it was a “terrible day for the teacher, a terrible day for the kids that was in that classroom, a terrible day for (his) great-grandson and a terrible day for the community and my other family members and friends.”

The boy, who is on medication, has returned to school and is undergoing therapy. At the start of the year, a family member had been present in the class due to the boy’s behavioral challenges. The school later informed them the precaution would no longer be necessary, his mom said.