Jennifer Crumbley, left, and James Crumbley, right, the parents of Ethan Crumbley, a teenager accused of killing four students in a shooting at Oxford High School in Oxford, Mich., appear in court for a preliminary examination on involuntary manslaughter charges in Rochester Hills, Mich., Feb. 8, 2022.
Guns came from the home of a parent or close relative in 76% of school attacks where firearms were used, according to a 2019 assessment by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The Newport News boy shot first-grade teacher Abigail Zwerner at Richneck Elementary on Jan. 6 as she sat at a reading table. The 25-year-old was struck by a bullet in her hand and chest. She was hospitalized for two weeks and has had four surgeries.
“The question is: At what point do we charge the parents with being able to foresee that the child would do something like this,” Primus said.The shooting in Newport News has also renewed calls for stronger gun storage laws.