'I thought I was dead': Virginia teacher shot by 6-year-old speaks out

A US teacher changeable by a six-year-old pupil has said she volition ne'er hide the look connected the boy's look erstwhile helium pointed the weapon astatine her.

Abigail Zwerner is speaking publically for the archetypal clip aft being changeable by a superior schoolhouse pupil connected 6 January.

The 25-year-old teacher elaborate the horrific time astatine Richneck Elementary School successful the metropolis of Newport News, Virginia.

"I thought I had died," she told NBC's Today amusement this week.

In the interrogation that aired connected Tuesday, writer Savannah Guthrie asks Ms Zwerner what she remembers astir the day.

"The greeting it felt similar conscionable a regular schoolhouse day, but I started proceeding things and things started happening that made my fearfulness grow," Ms Zwerner said.

Police person said the kid brought the weapon successful his backpack to the school.

Ms Zwerner plans to writer the schoolhouse territory aft she was changeable done her manus and precocious thorax pursuing what constabulary described arsenic an "altercation" with the first-grader.

An intent-to-sue announcement sent by the teacher's lawyer alleges that schoolhouse leaders had been warned aggregate times that the pupil had a firearm, and that the schoolhouse failed to adequately respond.

Ms Zwerner said she intelligibly recalls seeing the weapon being pointed astatine her.

"I retrieve the look connected his face. I retrieve feeling something. It was a beauteous scary day."

Ms Guthrie asked Ms Zwerner astir her near hand, which appeared connected camera wrapped successful aesculapian gauze.

"The archetypal gunshot went done my near manus and ruptured the mediate bony arsenic good arsenic the scale digit and the thumb. The gunshot past went into my thorax up present wherever it really inactive remains," she said, portion pointing conscionable supra her heart. "So, I person a scar up here, and I inactive person immoderate slug fragments up here."

Ms Zwerner said doctors astatine the infirmary told her the gunshot coiled "could've been fatal" but since the slug went done her manus it "most apt saved my life".

In the archetypal moments aft she was shot, Ms Zwerner said her archetypal thoughts were astir the information of her students. She ushered them retired of the schoolroom contempt her wounds earlier she was sent to the infirmary successful an ambulance.

Earlier this period Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney Howard Gwynn said that his bureau would not question charges against the boy. He said the "prospect that a six-year-old tin basal proceedings is problematic" due to the fact that the kid is excessively young to recognize the ineligible system, helium told NBC News.

The household of the young boy, who person besides not been charged, has said helium suffered from an "acute disability" and seldom attended schoolhouse without 1 of his parents being present. However, the time of the shooting helium had attended schoolhouse alone.

The firearm was legally purchased and belonged to the child's mother, constabulary person said.

In the aftermath of the incident, the school's superintendent was fired and the adjunct main resigned. Richneck Elementary School has since installed full-time information and metallic detectors.

In the NBC interview, Ms Zwerner said she sometimes has nightmares astir the shooting, and tin conflict to get retired of furniture immoderate days owed to the hard recovery.

"I'm not definite erstwhile the daze volition ever spell away… I deliberation astir it daily."