Leanne Depa pleaded for leniency for her now 18-year-old son Brendan Depa who has been arrested for assaulting paraprofessional Joan Naydich. He faces 30 years in prison upon conviction. The incident happened earlier this year at Matanzas High School in Florida near Daytona Beach. There was a conflict over a Nintendo Switch handheld videogame console. This caused Brendan to snap and attack Naydich, beating her to the point of unconsciousness and beyond. He wound up breaking four or five of her ribs, causing hearing loss, and allegedly continued cognitive function problems.
Brendan Depa has a history of violent outbursts. He also has a laundry list of mental disorders, including autism and ADHD. Leanne Depa says her adoptive son should have never been in the public school system. However, there wasn’t much she could do considering he was in a high-risk group home before being placed there. Brendan was placed in public school despite the objections of his mother who says he does not perform well in such environments. There were instructions given to workers to deal with Brendan but something was lost with the transitioning of new employees into the school.
SOURCES:
Mother speaks out after teen accused of attacking Flagler County teacher’s aide
Mom of Florida teen who beat teacher unconscious over Nintendo Switch says prison would be ‘death sentence’
Tearful mother of Brendan Depa, the hulking 6ft 6in autistic boy who brutally beat teacher’s aide unconscious over Nintendo Switch, says ‘prison is a death sentence’ as she breaks her silence and pleads with victim to show mercy | Daily Mail Online
Matanzas student arrested for assaulting paraprofessional fights inmate at county jail | Observer Local News | Palm Coast Observer and Ormond Beach Observer
Brendan Depa’s mom begs for leniency in sentencing for teacher attack
