Florida judge delays sentencing for teen who attacked teacher's aide
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - A judge has postponed the sentencing phase for a teenager who assaulted a teacher's aide, halting proceedings that were scheduled to take place on Wednesday.
The incident, which occurred last year, involved an attack on Joan Naydich, who provided testimony recounting how the event had irrevocably altered her life.
"My life will never be what it was before," Naydich said while on the stand.
She detailed the assault that transpired at Matanzas High School. She was serving as a paraprofessional when Brendan Depa, who has autism and other mental health conditions, pursued her and carried out the attack.
"My last memory is putting my hand on the doorknob to exit the room," she said.
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The altercation reportedly stemmed from a disagreement over a Nintendo Switch gaming console.
"There are consequences in life to bad actions, bad choices. He made the choice that day to come after me," Naydich said.
Dr. Umar Johnson, an activist with more than one million followers on social media, was in the courtroom on Wednesday. He was joined by about a dozen other activists and said he was disappointed turnout was low.
"I think the Brendan Depa case speaks so comprehensively to all the special education rights that are so often ignored when Black boys are concerned, and it speaks so comprehensively as to how, even with the federal special ed law, the state laws, Fourteenth Amendment protections, a Black boy can still be legally lynched in America to this day," he said.
He laid out what he considered the best and worst-case scenarios.
"Take it back to ‘juvie’ court. Let them give him probation. That's the best case. Worst-case scenario? Sentence him to time already served and let him go home. He's been through enough."
Ultimately, he expressed frustration over the lack of response to the case.
"Any time injustice is being handed out, the entire Black community needs to respond. Not just a dozen of us."
Depa, who pleaded no contest to aggravated battery on a school board employee, faces a potential sentence of up to 30 years in prison. However, his sentencing outcome could range from probation to a lengthy prison term.
There is no date set for the resumption of the sentencing. Stay tuned to FOX 35 News for updates.