Ex-educator failed Virginia teacher by not searching first-grader who had gun, expert testifies

An education expert provided damning testimony Wednesday in the $40 million civil trial of a former assistant principal in Virginia accused of ignoring warnings before a 6-year-old opened fire in his classroom, injuring first grade teacher Abigail Zwerner

An education expert provided damning testimony Wednesday in the $40 million civil trial of a former assistant principal in Virginia accused of ignoring warnings before a 6-year-old opened fire in his classroom, injuring first grade teacher Abigail Zwerner.

Ann Shufflebarger, an expert on school administration called by Zwerner’s attorneys, testified that people alerted former assistant principal Ebony Parker four times to the gun they believed the student brought in a backpack.

Those interactions, Shufflebarger said, gave Parker “one more level of information, one more opportunity to do what’s needed for safety."

"There are many things that needed to be done, and none of those were done at that time."

Shufflebarger testified that it was Parker’s job to confiscate the backpack, secure and search the student and contact law enforcement.