- 07 Jun 2023 04:38
#15276121
A mother of a 6-year-old child who shot a teacher has (on top of other reckless neglect charges) been charged with a federal gun crime because of marijuana (cannabis).
(Bear in mind that guns are otherwise legal in the U.S. where this woman lived, so the gun itself is not really the issue)
Despite marijuana having been legalized in several states, and the passage of a law in Virginia (where this woman lives) that says adults age 21 and older are allowed to possess a small amount of recreational marijuana, and to have a limited number of marijuana plants in their home. (The state law went into effect in July 2021)
She was charged with "unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm" and "making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm". These charges are due to the accusation that she lied about being a marijuana user when she signed a mandatory federal document the previous year when she purchased a Taurus 9 mm handgun.
It seems like the prosecutor was just looking for anything additional that the woman could be criminally charged over. (It helps pressure the defendant into a plea bargain, for one thing)
She already faced charges felony child neglect, and a misdemeanor count of recklessly leaving a loaded firearm so as to endanger a child.
The woman's 6-year-old had taken a gun to his school and shot his teacher.
This is another example how if a prosecutor wants to punish a person for one thing, they can use another law that is about something different to do it.
The mother might believe, for example, that there is not clear enough evidence to prove with certainty that she was at fault for the child getting his hands on the gun. So this additional criminal charge will make it certain that she will go to prison. (That's the strategy prosecutors commonly use, throw as many criminal charges as possible and hopefully some of them will stick)
Even though the marijuana was not a crime under state law, it did constitute a crime under federal law. (Persons in the U.S. are subject to both state and federal jurisdiction)
The last couple of U.S. Attorney Generals had promised or signaled that they would avoid prosecuting crimes involving marijuana, so there was some general public sense that marijuana was equivalent to no longer being criminalized from federal rules. This latest story demonstrates that is not entirely true.
Probably the prosecutor suspects the mother's marijuana use might have had something to do with how the child was able to obtain the gun. (If being under the influence of marijuana caused the parent not to have full awareness of what she was doing, or led her to act in an irresponsible way)
The mother has apologized to the teacher and said she was responsible for her son's access to the handgun, though she maintains she is not clear exactly how he obtained it.
Deja Taylor, age 25, was previously indicted over the incident in April 2023.
Her defense attorney said she would plead guilty to the federal charges in an agreement with prosecutors.
Prosecutors have said the boy will not be charged.
The teacher, Abigail Zwerner, was shot on January 6 at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News in her first-grade classroom by the 6-year-old student. She led her class of about 20 students to safety after she was seriously wounded in her left hand and chest. She has said that before the shooting, school officials knew of at least three separate warnings that the 6-year-old boy was believed to have a gun and had an alleged pattern of troubling behavior.
The teacher later filed a $40 million lawsuit against the school. (Which is ridiculous in my opinion, the school should not be blamed for this or should not be held responsible financially. Just goes to show the huge problem with ridiculous lawsuits in the U.S., but she will probably end up getting a huge amount of money in a settlement from the school, paid for by the taxpayers. But that's another separate discussion.)
Mother of 6-year-old who shot Virginia teacher charged with federal gun crimes, NBC News, Dennis Romero, June 5, 2023
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/mo ... -rcna87825
Of course I have no problem if the mother faces some punishment, like maybe 2 years in prison, and being required to pay for the medical expenses of the teacher. But I have a problem with other aspects of this story. I think it may be a mistake to judge how the law and justice system works only by outcome, whether we think it resulted in the correct outcome. There were some unsettling principles here. (I mean for example, imagine if these same tactics were used against someone else who did not deserve to go to prison)
As one last additional consideration, for those who support gun rights, it is disturbing that there exists any federal law at all that criminalizes possession of an ordinary gun under any circumstances. However, most Conservatives in the U.S., who are also the ones more likely to support the right to have guns, also do not look kindly upon illegal drug possession, even including marijuana, so do not seem to have any big quarrel with this specific law. There's some sense in the U.S. that people should have to be required to choose between marijuana rights and gun rights, and are not necessarily entitled to have both.
This is kind of a boring story but I think it illustrates some legal principles worth considering.
(Bear in mind that guns are otherwise legal in the U.S. where this woman lived, so the gun itself is not really the issue)
Despite marijuana having been legalized in several states, and the passage of a law in Virginia (where this woman lives) that says adults age 21 and older are allowed to possess a small amount of recreational marijuana, and to have a limited number of marijuana plants in their home. (The state law went into effect in July 2021)
She was charged with "unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm" and "making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm". These charges are due to the accusation that she lied about being a marijuana user when she signed a mandatory federal document the previous year when she purchased a Taurus 9 mm handgun.
It seems like the prosecutor was just looking for anything additional that the woman could be criminally charged over. (It helps pressure the defendant into a plea bargain, for one thing)
She already faced charges felony child neglect, and a misdemeanor count of recklessly leaving a loaded firearm so as to endanger a child.
The woman's 6-year-old had taken a gun to his school and shot his teacher.
This is another example how if a prosecutor wants to punish a person for one thing, they can use another law that is about something different to do it.
The mother might believe, for example, that there is not clear enough evidence to prove with certainty that she was at fault for the child getting his hands on the gun. So this additional criminal charge will make it certain that she will go to prison. (That's the strategy prosecutors commonly use, throw as many criminal charges as possible and hopefully some of them will stick)
Even though the marijuana was not a crime under state law, it did constitute a crime under federal law. (Persons in the U.S. are subject to both state and federal jurisdiction)
The last couple of U.S. Attorney Generals had promised or signaled that they would avoid prosecuting crimes involving marijuana, so there was some general public sense that marijuana was equivalent to no longer being criminalized from federal rules. This latest story demonstrates that is not entirely true.
Probably the prosecutor suspects the mother's marijuana use might have had something to do with how the child was able to obtain the gun. (If being under the influence of marijuana caused the parent not to have full awareness of what she was doing, or led her to act in an irresponsible way)
The mother has apologized to the teacher and said she was responsible for her son's access to the handgun, though she maintains she is not clear exactly how he obtained it.
Deja Taylor, age 25, was previously indicted over the incident in April 2023.
Her defense attorney said she would plead guilty to the federal charges in an agreement with prosecutors.
Prosecutors have said the boy will not be charged.
The teacher, Abigail Zwerner, was shot on January 6 at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News in her first-grade classroom by the 6-year-old student. She led her class of about 20 students to safety after she was seriously wounded in her left hand and chest. She has said that before the shooting, school officials knew of at least three separate warnings that the 6-year-old boy was believed to have a gun and had an alleged pattern of troubling behavior.
The teacher later filed a $40 million lawsuit against the school. (Which is ridiculous in my opinion, the school should not be blamed for this or should not be held responsible financially. Just goes to show the huge problem with ridiculous lawsuits in the U.S., but she will probably end up getting a huge amount of money in a settlement from the school, paid for by the taxpayers. But that's another separate discussion.)
Mother of 6-year-old who shot Virginia teacher charged with federal gun crimes, NBC News, Dennis Romero, June 5, 2023
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/mo ... -rcna87825
Of course I have no problem if the mother faces some punishment, like maybe 2 years in prison, and being required to pay for the medical expenses of the teacher. But I have a problem with other aspects of this story. I think it may be a mistake to judge how the law and justice system works only by outcome, whether we think it resulted in the correct outcome. There were some unsettling principles here. (I mean for example, imagine if these same tactics were used against someone else who did not deserve to go to prison)
As one last additional consideration, for those who support gun rights, it is disturbing that there exists any federal law at all that criminalizes possession of an ordinary gun under any circumstances. However, most Conservatives in the U.S., who are also the ones more likely to support the right to have guns, also do not look kindly upon illegal drug possession, even including marijuana, so do not seem to have any big quarrel with this specific law. There's some sense in the U.S. that people should have to be required to choose between marijuana rights and gun rights, and are not necessarily entitled to have both.
This is kind of a boring story but I think it illustrates some legal principles worth considering.
Last edited by Puffer Fish on 07 Jun 2023 06:32, edited 1 time in total.
This is nothing new. The prosecutor's job is to look for criminal acts by the perpetrator, and prosecute them.
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