NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — The trial for the former Richneck Elementary School teacher shot by her 6-year-old student has been pushed back to late next year.
Abby Zwerner is suing the Newport News Public Schools (NNPS) division for $40 million, alleging staff ignored warning signs about the child throughout the day leading up to the shooting.
The trial was supposed to begin at the end of January. At the start of Friday’s hearing, both legal teams told the judge they need more time to gather evidence and interview witnesses.
Zwerner’s co-counsel Jeffrey Breit spoke to 13News Now after the hearing. He said Zwerner will be disappointed about the delay. “She has not been able to do the things that we want to do, one of which is make a living,” Breit explained. “Obviously she wants it over with, she wants to move on with her life the best way she can, and this case is kind of holding that up.”
The plaintiff’s side says they need a judge to compel former Richneck Elementary assistant principal Ebony Parker to testify. They say Parker has plead the 5th Amendment during much of her deposition testimony, a claim Parker’s attorney disputed during Friday’s hearing.
“Until the assistant principal decides to talk about things, I think the judge will order her in December to talk about, we’re kind of stuck,” Breit said.
Parker’s attorney told the judge her client testified for more than two hours.
During Friday’s hearing, the judge also heard several motions to compel from the school division’s side. The legal team requested the plaintiffs produce documents and facts related to the case, including text messages and emails from Zwerner related to the incident. The judge granted some of those requests, but said others were either too broad or breached attorney-client work product privileges.
With the new trial date, the hearing set for Oct. 25 will no longer go forward. That was the date a judge was expected to rule on the case’s validity, as the school division’s legal team is making a claim of sovereign immunity, meaning the suit against it could not go forward.
13News Now did not hear from NNPS’ attorneys after court Friday. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for Dec. 5.