The 6-year-old Virginia boy who shot his teacher in the chest before launching into a vicious, caught-on-camera tirade against another educator – yelling “f–k you, b—h” – did not face any criminal charges related to the twisted attack.
asserted
who → shoot → attack
Instead, the boy – only identified by officials as J.T. – was ordered to spend 227 days undergoing inpatient psychiatric confinement for shooting his teacher, Abby Zwerner, in front of 16 students in their first grade class on Jan. 6, 2023, according to court records.
uncertain
boy → identify → records
Harrowing police bodycam footage released this week shows the baby-faced gunman swearing a blue streak and threatening cops just moments after he opened fire inside of the classroom in Newport News, a small city about 70 miles southwest of Richmond.
asserted
he → harrow → Richmond
“Both y’all want a f–king piece of me, b—h?!” J.T. yells at officers, while a Richneck Elementary School reading specialist, Amy Kovac, is seen restraining him in a bear hug and repeatedly pleading with him to “stop.”
asserted
specialist → want → him
“F–k you, b—h,” the tiny perp responds, according to the video, which also shows cops discovering a 9 mm Taurus handgun nearby on the ground.
uncertain
cops → f → ground
“I stole that from my mom,” J.T. says, gesturing to the firearm, which he admittedly stole from his mother’s purse earlier that morning.
asserted
he → steal → purse
“He has been on a modified schedule.
asserted
He → modify → schedule
His mother is to pick him up at 2:30.
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mother → pick → 2:30
This is his first week without his mother coming to school with him,” she’s heard saying in the clip.
asserted
she → come → clip
J.T.’s mother, Deja Nicole Taylor, eventually spent almost two years behind bars after pleading guilty to state felony child neglect and federal gun charges, which partly stemmed from her lying about using marijuana on a background-check form when she bought the firearm used in the shooting.
asserted
she → spend → shooting
Throughout those legal proceedings, details of J.T.’s troubled past poured out in court.
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details → pour → court
On two separate occasions when he was just five years old, the boy had secretly stolen his mom’s keys and taken her car out by himself – once crashing it, according to prosecutors.
uncertain
boy → steal → prosecutors
Just one month before J.T. brought the handgun to school, Taylor, now 29, had fired it during an argument with his father, Malik Ellison, prosecutors claimed.
asserted
prosecutors → bring → father
Nobody was hurt during that incident.
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Nobody → hurt → incident
Taylor also filed a restraining order and a slew of police reports over the years against Ellison, whom she and at least one other woman accused of being physically abusive, according to police records obtained by WAVY News.
uncertain
she → file → News
Though Taylor was released from prison in February, J.T. currently remains in the care of his great-grandfather – who has blamed social services for failing the youngster long before the gunfire.
asserted
who → release → gunfire
“He was a victim before that date,” Calvin Taylor told the outlet in January 2024.
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Taylor → tell → January
“Contrary to popular belief, I know they said that my granddaughter neglected him and placed him in precarious situations, but there were instances where she tried to get help.
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she → know → help
I drove her to certain places.
asserted
I → drive → places
My other daughters drove her to places to acquire help, even the safety plan that they put in place after the car incident.
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they → drive → incident
There was no follow-up,” he continued.
asserted
he → be → ?
As of that interview, J.T. was earning good grades at his new school and taking accountability for leaving his teacher with gunshots through her hand and chest, Calvin Taylor said.
asserted
Taylor → earn → hand
“I’m grateful that I have an opportunity to spend time with him daily and that I have an opportunity to watch him grow up as a young man without a lot of baggage.
asserted
him → ’m → baggage
I’m also grateful that he understands that it was an egregious mistake and that he’s not going to be defined by that mistake,” he said.
asserted
he → ’m → mistake
The Aporia
