The
mother, Deja Taylor, faced up to five years in prison. This
sentence is greater than the original plea deal with prosecutors
for a reduced sentence to six months. She is also to serve two
years probation.
Calls to the prosecutor to confirm the sentencing and a call to
the defense attorney seeking comment were not immediately
returned to Reuters.
Taylor, 26, whose son shot his teacher Abby Zwerner at Richneck
Elementary School in Newport News, previously pleaded guilty to
gun charges in a separate federal case and was sentenced to 21
months in federal prison in November. As part of the state plea
deal, she can serve her state sentence concurrently.
According to police, the boy had taken the 9mm pistol from his
mother's purse, hid it in his backpack and took it out while
Zwerner was teaching class, firing a single shot through her
hand and into her chest.
Zwerner survived the wounds and was hailed as a hero for
evacuating students from her classroom.
Zwerner's lawyer, who filed a $40 million lawsuit against school
administrators on her client's behalf, has said that Richneck
Elementary officials had been warned three times the day of the
shooting that the boy was armed.
Zwerner has not returned to the classroom, media accounts say.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
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