Guilt and the Youthful Shooter

 This is a photograph of the first-grade teacher, Abby Zwerner, who was shot recently in Newport News, VA by a six-year-old-student . She is alive and recovering from her wounds.

According to police reports, the shooting was not accidental. The shooting was purposeful with intent to cause bodily injury and Virginia law requires a punishment of the offender of imprisonment for life or for any term not less than 20 year. So this shooter could be released at the age of 26? 

Oh, no!

Virginia law prevents six-year-olds being tried as adults. And the child would also be too young to be committed to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice if found guilty. the only "punishment" that could be imposed on him for his crime is to revoke the parents' custody of the boy and take him into the supervision of the state. 

Justice for the victim? Hardly. If the shooter is old enough to willfully shoot his teacher, he is old enough to be punished for it. There must be consequences for one's actions, regardless of age. What that punishment should be is yet another question that is gaining importance as the shooters become younger and younger.

In this case, we can almost be certain that the kid did not legally acquire the firearm., We can be absolutely certain he did not legally possess the fire arm.  We can be absolutely certain he did illegally possess the firearm on school property.  We do not yet know where or how he came to possess the firearm  but whoever enable ,him by some means to obtain it should also be held culpable and be punished. But in the end, that person or persons persons did not pull the trigger of the firearm held in the kid's hand when he shot the teacher.