Since 1998, I have been a refugee, from working as a teacher in public education, and have paid attention to many of the nationally televised shootings, as my blog and book confirm.
Richneck Elementary School: The televised reports of the shooting and subsequent civil trial against the vice principal and the upcoming criminal trial of the vice principal have been of special interest to me. Since January 6, 2023, life has not been the same for anyone in Richneck Elementary School.
Life has not been the same for me since 1998, when I was told to get out of my class for speaking up for the safety of my classroom. I believed in 1998 that prevention is worth a pound of cure and so much more. The jury on November 6, 2025, placed a value of $10,000,000 for the results of the "incident" that did not prevent anything.
I am happy the young teacher (plaintiff) followed through with her case and had lawyers who believed her. The defense lawyer (vice principal) had ignorant lawyers. Why did the blond defense lawyer use the words "unthinkable" and "unprecedented"? Her words were not built on truth. No one in their right mind would use those terms to describe the "incident" or events of January 6, 2023. Interesting the defense attornies did not use the words shooting.
I wrote my book to share my story and help prevent it. It took a lot to follow through. I was not shot, and no one in my school was. But then, and even today, the possibility was great that there could have been one.
The recent court case's testimony stated that three students warned the staff of imminent danger. What the staff did and failed to do led to a young teacher getting shot.
You may wonder why the students played a part and why the staff went to the principal. Students should be believed, and the chain of command is spelled out in policy. Staff who break the chain of command face consequences. Not every adult believes children. Although it is greatly recognized that young children usually do not lie when it could lead them into trouble. The girls and the young boy faced threats from their 6-year-old classmate with a gun.
Maybe these two documents will give more insight. They are from 1998.
My principal told me I could not consider children neutral and take their word. I used neutral to distinguish between the perpetrator and the victim, a witness.
The policy created in October 1998, after I left the school district, spelled out what a teacher should do in the case of a weapon on campus.
Connect dots for prevention. ASK yourself what you would do in a school if a child threatened others with a weapon, not just a gun. How did the expert testimony in the trial fair?
ASK- asking saves kids yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
When the system fails.
Marian R. Carlino
November 9 2025
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