USA: The teacher who was injured by a 6-year-old student’s bullet is a “hero”.

American authorities yesterday praised the heroism and self-sacrifice of a teacher who, despite being injured by a gun bullet held by her 6-year-old student, “saved lives” by making sure to get the rest of the children out of the classroom before he even received medical attention.

Abigail Zuerner, 25, “saved lives on Friday,” Steve Drew, the police chief in Newport News, Virginia, where the drama unfolded, said during a press conference inside a Richneck Elementary School classroom.

After an argument with his teacher, the contents of which have not been released, the 6-year-old boy pulled a Taurus 9mm handgun from his holster and pointed it at her. Mrs. Zuerner took a defensive stance, extending her hand. The child fired once; the bullet went through the teacher’s arm and hit her in the torso.

The 25-year-old, who has been hospitalized since Friday, is in a stable condition, Mr. Drew informed, referring to her “heroine”.

“She made sure all the kids were out of the classroom and she was the last one to leave the room,” he explained. “I think it saved lives because I don’t know what could have happened if the children had stayed inside.”

There were a total of sixteen to twenty children in the class when the horrific incident unfolded. No children were injured; only the teacher.

After the shooting, another woman who works at the school, whose identity has not been released, rushed into the classroom and tried to keep the little assailant under control, even though he was hitting her, as the young teacher was ushering the rest of her students out. When police arrived a few minutes later, they found the gun on the floor of the room. They led the little offender to a patrol car.

“I wish that question never had to be asked. How does a six year old know how to use a gun? I don’t know if I can give you an adequate answer,” Mr. Drew said.

Authorities have decided to temporarily remove custody of the shooting child from his parents and are keeping him at a medical center, according to the police chief. The comparatively small pistol he used was legally purchased by his mother.

A judge is expected to decide today whether the six-year-old will remain in custody. It is not yet clear if he will be charged with attempted murder, or if the parents will be charged with aiding and abetting.

It is not the first time that the small town of Newport News, near the naval base of Norfolk, has become the theater of an incident involving the use of a gun inside a school.

In September 2021, two 17-year-old teenagers were injured by a classmate at a high school in the city.

According to the city’s superintendent of public schools, George Parker, the educational institution was completely unprepared for the possibility that a six-year-old student would bring a gun to school and shoot. He explained that it was the third time since 1970 that a child six years old or younger has shot up a school.

Gun attacks in educational institutions are a scourge in the US. In May, a teenager murdered 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

In 2022, there were 44,000 gun deaths in the US, half of which were suicides and the other half were murders, accidents and cases of self-defense, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

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