The female teaching assistant who was brutally beaten by a six-foot-six, 270-pound student at a Florida school is refusing to help lessen the teen’s sentence.
Joan Naydich, a 57-year-old paraprofessional at Palm Coast’s Matanzas High School, was seen getting savagely tackled to the floor, punched, and kicked until she was unconscious in a video that went viral following the February 21 incident. Brendan Depa, then 17, allegedly attacked Naydich over an order to stop playing with his Nintendo Switch device in class, Breitbart News reported in February.
In Flagler County, Florida, a 17-year-old student at Matanzas High School is alleged to have ambushed and physically attacked a teacher's aide, leaving her unconscious, according to police. pic.twitter.com/sNuaxx1q88
— Inside Edition (@InsideEdition) February 27, 2023
Depa, who is autistic, has been charged as an adult with aggravated battery, and is set to plead guilty to avoid trial, the New York Post reports. However, Judge Terrence Perkins can still sentence him as a youthful offender — leaving the penalty options as low as just probation up to 30 years behind bars. Depa’s disability, as well as his victim’s opinion, are likely to influence the decision.
According to a report from Flagler Live, Naydich has “shown no interest in mitigating what penalties Depa might face,” causing the defense to have a “much steeper climb to convince the prosecution to plead.”
Depa, now 18, has a long rap sheet full of violence prior to his attack on Naydich. According to the New York Post, the teen has three other battery arrests under his belt. Flagler Live also reported that Depa got into a jail fight just last month.
“I’m hopeful that the awareness of this incident being spread far and wide will prevent anyone else from ever dealing with the trauma, physical healing and disruption of everyday life this has caused,” Naydich said on a GoFundMe page set up by a friend. Since February, she has received over $100,000 in donations.
Depa will reportedly enter his plea later in the month, and will be sentenced afterwards in a separate hearing.
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