cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/3089104
NEWPORT NEWS — The Newport News Education Association President condemned the premise of the school division’s motion to dismiss Abigail Zwerner’s pending $40 million lawsuit.
The motion was filed last week by attorneys representing the School Board and argues that Zwerner, who was shot in her classroom at Richneck Elementary in January by a 6-year-old student, is only entitled to file a worker’s compensation claim because the injury she sustained from the shooting is a “workplace injury,” and that the shooting was a hazard of the job.
You guys saying “well are they wrong?” Are missing the point, the lawyer is attempting to normalize school shootings, and he’s trying to do this in order to let the school get away with not taking the appropriate steps to prevent this incident from happening.
Not fair to blame the lawyer though. He’s hired to defend them to the best of his ability.
You want to be mad. Be mad at the school that agreed that this is the defense they agreed to go for.
You know, fuck that. I don’t agree. The lawyer is willfully making people and society worse in this defense, consciously. That is indefensible and condemnable.
There’s nothing stopping lawyers from dropping clients that make them go against their morals, so either the lawyer has no morals or their morals weigh less than the paycheck they’ll get.
No, I choose to blame the guy making money by defending the status quo.
He could have chosen an honorable career, instead chose to defend scumbags for $$$.
Again. Either everyone is entitled to the best defense possible. Or no one is. Because who’s going to decide who can get a good defense and not?
Do you know how many people have been tried for crimes they didn’t commit? People have been falsely accused of rape and gone to trial.
Do they not deserve a good lawyer? Or is your moral compass going to decide ahead of each trial who is innocently accused or not to determine if they are allowed a lawyer or not?
To be fair how is it the schools fault if muricans are retarded with their gun laws?
Yeah, that makes sense. This filling isn’t wrong to attempt, but there’s also no reason to not believe negligence wasn’t involved in protecting their teachers. I doubt the judge will dismiss based on this reasoning. That’s what the trial is for. I don’t blame the attorney for trying though, and I don’t doubt the reasoning will be a very large part of their defense in the end.
While I understand the assholes are trying to get a lower payment, if this is a workplace hazard, then every teacher should sue for back hazard pay, violations on clearly showing it’s a possibility and expectation to get shot, and I’m sure OSHA has something on providing proper PPE. It’s a workplace hazard after all.
I read a little more about it. They are saying that she was entitled to claim workman’s comp, but refused to do so. She has thus far refused benefits to which she was/is entitled.
Their theory is that whatever damages are eventually assessed in this case should not include the benefits she is entitled to receive separate and apart from the case. This would be important if she is awarded triple damages, for example. They are effectively arguing that the medical bills shouldn’t be tripled, even if every other claim is.
It’s a technical point, but likely a solid one.
Well, okay then. Did the school do everything it could to mitigate this professional hazard?
Let’s see the “school shooting” part of the risk assessment, the prevention steps taken, the training, and so on.
Workplace injury?? It’s a school, not a fucking shooting range.
I’d love to see the data on deaths at shooting ranges vs schools. And by “love” I mean that I’ll probably be queasy to learn more people die at schools than shooting ranges.
By a kindergartener as well. 20 years ago this would have been an Onion headline.
If we’re not going to enact common sense gun laws and protections for the public, then it is a workplace injury. She should still be allowed to sue those responsible for not protecting her and the children in her care, but when you normalize school shootings this is what you get. If a cop can say getting shot is a workplace injury and receive compensation for the rest of his life, so should she.
If I understand the article correctly they’re trying to say it’s a workplace injury to cap the payout to something lower than she was trying to get.
The way the law is set up (and thus the reason the lawyers are arguing it) is that you can’t sue your employer for a workplace injury, it is purely a workers compensation (insurance) claim, and those do not pay any millions of dollars, and also the school would be covered by their insurance.
