The family of a six-year-old boy who shot and wounded his teacher in Virginia said that the gun he used had been "secured."
The family's statement was released by an attorney and did not elaborate further on where the 9mm handgun was kept. The family also was not identified.
"Our family has always been committed to responsible gun ownership and keeping firearms out of the reach of children," the statement said. "The firearm our son accessed was secured."
READ MORE: Anger grows in Virginia city where first-grader shot teacher
The family also said that the boy "suffers from an acute disability and was under a care plan at the school that included his mother or father attending school with him and accompanying him to class every day."
The family said the week of the shooting "was the first week when we were not in class with him. We will regret our absence on this day for the rest of our lives."
The statement was released through the office of Newport News-based attorney James S. Ellenson.
The shooting occurred as teacher Abigail Zwerner taught her first grade class at Richneck Elementary in Newport News on January 6.
The bullet pierced Ms Zwerner's hand and struck her chest. The 25-year-old teacher hustled her students out of the classroom before being rushed to the hospital.
Newport News police had said that the six-year-old's mother legally purchased the gun but that it was unclear how her son gained access to it.
A Virginia law prohibits leaving a loaded gun where it is accessible to a child under 14, a misdemeanor crime punishable with a maximum one-year prison sentence and $2,500 (€2,311) fine. No charges have been brought against the mother so far.
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