A teenage boy accused of punching and kicking his teaching assistant in a row over a Nintendo Switch will be charged as an adult – after being arrested for battery three times in 2019.
Brendan Depa, 17, can be named for the first time after the Seventh Judicial Court of Florida ruled that he would be transferred to adult court.
He is facing an aggravated battery charge after he attacked Joan Naydich, 57, at Matanzas High School on February 21.
The 6’6′ student was caught on camera viciously beating the ‘humble’ mother-of-two until she was unconscious, with Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly warning it ‘could have been a homicide’.
He knocked Naydich to the ground before kicking and punching the unconscious woman at least 15 times in the back and head.
Brendan Depa, 17, can be named for the first time after the Seventh Judicial Court of Florida ruled that he would be transferred to adult court
Those convicted of aggravated battery in Florida face up to 15 years in jail, as well as 15 years on probation and up to $15,000 in fines.
According to Fox 35 News, Depa was charged with battery three times in 2019 before the attack this month.
He previously completed a Department of Juvenile Justice program, with Sheriff Staly supporting the decision to charge him as an adult in the latest incident.
According to the state attorney’s office, Depa ‘did actually and intentionally touch or strike (the victim) against the will of (her) and in doing so used a deadly weapon, and/or intentionally or knowingly caused great bodily harm, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement.’
Sheriff Staly said: ‘This student is just six months shy of age 18, and it was also a brutal attack on this teacher. Fortunately, this didn’t result in a fatality.
‘This could be a homicide we are talking about.’
Naydich has since been released from hospital and is recovering at home after being beaten by Depa.
She has a son who attends the high school and a daughter who graduated in 2013. Nayditch has worked for Flagler County Schools since 2004, and at Matanzas since 2021.
Joan Naydich, 57, of Palm Coast, (pictured with son Morgan) was thrown to the ground and knocked unconscious on Tuesday at Matanzas High School
In surveillance footage, released by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the hulking student, 17, of Palm Coast, can be seen rushing up to Naydich before launching her across the room
She hits the ground head-first, rendering her unconscious. The special needs student immediately begins kicking her before kneeling down to punch her in the head and torso
Joan Naydich’s body flew several feet before she was knocked unconscious. The student had said he would ‘beat her up every time she takes away his game’
A GoFundMe for the teacher described her as ‘humble’ and says she ‘never asks for help’ – adding that she ‘needs love and support during this difficult time’.
In surveillance footage, released by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the hulking student can be seen rushing up to Naydich before launching her across the room, her body flying several feet.
She hits the ground head-first, rendering her unconscious, with the special needs student immediately kicking Naydich before kneeling down to punch her in the head and torso.
Another woman runs up to the student and grabs his arm, but is unable to pull him off the aide before several others rush to drag him off her.
Even after they manage to push him to the ground, he still reaches his leg out to hit Naydich a few more times.
It takes five staff members to restrain and drag him away from her body as he fought against them.
Depa claimed he would ‘beat her up every time she takes away his game,’ and spat on Naydich as deputies escorted him away, according to the arrest report.
In bodycam footage, the student can be seen asking officers if he is ‘going to jail,’ while they handcuff him in the school.
The mother-of-two (pictured together) has a son, a senior, who attends the high school and a daughter who graduated in 2013. She has worked for Flagler County Schools since 2004 and has worked at Matanzas since 2021
It took five staff members to restrain and drag the boy away from Naydich’s body as he fought against them
The student was arrested and taken to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, before being turned over to the Department of Juvenile Justice
‘For how long?’ the students asked. ‘I don’t know,’ the officer replied.
Moments later he told officers: ‘F**k you, I don’t want to go to jail. I have more important things to do,’ before accusing them of manhandling him.
According to Fox there used to be a school dedicated to troubled teens in Flagler County, for pupils who struggled to function in a traditional classroom environment.
They also include those who had been with a crime, or was considered too violent to attend classes on traditional campuses.
But Flagler County voters failed to pass a 50-cent millage property tax levy to pay for the school back in 2013.
Sheriff Staly added: ‘We had a school resource officer assigned to that mini-school if you will, and that’s been eliminated. Maybe this is something the district should look at.’
