Prison time for Florida teen who beat teacher over Nintendo Switch would be ‘death sentence’: tearful mom By Social Links forKatherine Donlevy Published Nov. 30, 2023, 7:57 p.m. ET MORE ON:
The mother of the hulking Florida teen who beat his female teacher unconscious over a Nintendo Switch video game claimed prison time would be a “death sentence” for her convicted son.
Leanne Depa pleaded for leniency for the now-18-year-old Brendan Depa, who faces up to 30 years behind bars for slamming Matanzas High School paraprofessional Joan Naydich to the floor before kicking and punching her in the back and head more than a dozen times.
In her first public appearance since the February beatdown, the grieving mother Wednesday begged Naydich to request that the 6-foot-6 teenager be handed a lighter punishment.
“I am so sorry for what my son did and nobody should ever have to go through that,” Leanna Depa said on an appearance on NewsNation’s “Banfield” through tears.
“But at the same time, please consider that my son has had a hard life and he’s gone through so much trauma in his life. He has autism. Please show mercy to him.”
Brendan Depa pleaded guilty last month to beating Naydich over the video game when he was just 17, leaving her with five broken ribs, hearing loss and what she claims are ongoing cognitive problems.
The disturbing incident — and teachers’ futile attempts to stop the attack — was captured on the school’s surveillance footage.
“I feel like if he gets sentenced to prison, it’s a death sentence for him. He’s scared. And to have your child call and cry and say, ‘I don’t want to die’ — it’s awful,” Leanne Depa said.
The mourning mom blamed a laundry list of mental disabilities and a history of childhood trauma for her son’s behavior — and questioned why he was even permitted inside the Florida public school.
Brendan Depa — who grapples with severe autism, ADHD, oppositional defiance disorder and reactive explosive disorder — was placed in the school by his intensive behavioral group home despite his time at an autism behavioral hospital just two years earlier, she said.
“I had always homeschooled him because he didn’t handle the school environment. I asked the group home, ‘Did he have to go to public school? Could he not do school online?’ And I was assured by them that all of their clients went to public school,” Leanne Depa said.
“I never thought he belonged in public school. I didn’t have a choice.”
Leanne Depa added that he should have never been near the Nintendo Switch during school hours and that a crisis team is typically called before professionals take the game away.
Naydich said she had never taken the game away from the teenager, but that he lashed out after another faculty member prohibited him from playing with it.
Brendan Depa’s behavioral issues, particularly his autism, do not constitute a defense in Florida, according to the mother.
Joan Naydich walks with her council as Brendan Depa is escorted back to the holding cells. 4 Victim Joan Naydich said she wants her attacker to receive the maximum sentence of 30 years behind bars.
The teenager was initially charged as a juvenile before the federal raps were upgraded.
The troubled teen had three prior battery arrests before the assault on Naydich and was reportedly involved in a jail fight in September.
A beast who’d do something like that needs to be kept away from regular people. Prison is the perfect place for him, among his own kind, second only to the ground.
Guaranfugginteed if he gets out he’ll do it to someone else, probably multiple someones.
Don't agree pappy the sob should have been drug out of the building stood against a concrete wall and shot. Furthermore his mother should be liable for the victims medical bills. The taxpayers should not have to pay to try and incarcerate that pos. He is a total waste of oxygen.
" Cheapest velocity in the world comes from a long barrel and I sure do like them. MB "
A beast who’d do something like that needs to be kept away from regular people. Prison is the perfect place for him, among his own kind, second only to the ground.
Guaranfugginteed if he gets out he’ll do it to someone else, probably multiple someones.
I do agree with one thing the "mother" said about her boy. He should of never been allowed in a public school. But, the department of education wants to "main stream" even those who shouldn't be in a public school. He should of been in a caged school. Someplace where he would of been held accountable for his bad behavior since his first day. That is NOT a public school under the direction of the FEDERAL department of education.
kwg
For liberals and anarchists, power and control is opium, selling envy is the fastest and easiest way to get it. TRR. American conservative. Never trust a white liberal. Malcom X Current NRA member.
Brendan Depa — who grapples with severe autism, ADHD, oppositional defiance disorder and reactive explosive disorder — was placed in the school by his intensive behavioral group home despite his time at an autism behavioral hospital just two years earlier, she said
Sounds like he should be imprisoned just to protect society.
Public schools are filled with youth that has no place among the other students and faculty. The teachers are on their own in the classroom. Administration pressures the teachers to “handle” the situations that arise. The kids with issues are given every provision to be among the “normal “ kids. Shouldn’t be that way. I hope this pos gets locked up for a very long time.
Brendan Depa — who grapples with severe autism, ADHD, oppositional defiance disorder and reactive explosive disorder — was placed in the school by his intensive behavioral group home despite his time at an autism behavioral hospital just two years earlier, she said
Sounds like he should be imprisoned just to protect society.
I’m old enough to remember a time we had societal consensus around this being a legit reason for incarceration.
We’ve lost our minds tho. Now that’s considered mean.
Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Give a man a welfare check, a forty ounce malt liquor, a crack pipe, an Obama phone, free health insurance. and some Air Jordan's and he votes Democrat for a lifetime.
Try managing a whole classroom full of society's misfits sometime- - - -in a shop environment where every tool is a weapon, and those kids are working on cars belonging to teachers who think getting free auto care is an entitlement! I spent 30+ years doing that because the "counselors" didn't want those animals in the same classes with the college bound kids.
A beast who’d do something like that needs to be kept away from regular people. Prison is the perfect place for him, among his own kind, second only to the ground.
Guaranfugginteed if he gets out he’ll do it to someone else, probably multiple someones.
I do agree with one thing the "mother" said about her boy. He should of never been allowed in a public school. But, the department of education wants to "main stream" even those who shouldn't be in a public school. He should of been in a caged school. Someplace where he would of been held accountable for his bad behavior since his first day. That is NOT a public school under the direction of the FEDERAL department of education.
kwg
Tried to mainstream that kid. Really a terrible idea.
Slaves get what they need. Free men get what they want.
It all depends on the administration or lack of. If they back the teachers those misfits won’t be there to cause trouble. You can’t teach a pack of wild animals.
Don't agree pappy the sob should have been drug out of the building stood against a concrete wall and shot. Furthermore his mother should be liable for the victims medical bills. The taxpayers should not have to pay to try and incarcerate that pos. He is a total waste of oxygen.
No argument from me. What the hell was that wigger thinking when she adopted that POS? Must be some major white guilt.
"Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel. Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but downright force. Whenever you give up that force, you are inevitably ruined.”
It’s called “inclusion”. Put the ones that are about a sine wave off in classes with normal kids with the hope that their behavior will improve.
My retired schoolteacher wife taught middle schoolers and she seemed to be able to keep troublemakers under control so a lot of them were assigned to her classes. She got really good about keeping documentation on their behavior, etc. During her last few years she was able to get rid of a couple of them for making inappropriate sexual remarks to some of the girls and one boy. She took the girls and the boy to the principal’s office and got them to repeat verbatim what the whackos had said and then put it in writing. With all of her documentation and statements of the students, they were finally moved to the alternative school for “sexual harassment”.
Last edited by navlav8r; 12/01/23.
NRA Life,Endowment,Patron or Benefactor since '72.
Don't agree pappy the sob should have been drug out of the building stood against a concrete wall and shot. Furthermore his mother should be liable for the victims medical bills. The taxpayers should not have to pay to try and incarcerate that pos. He is a total waste of oxygen.
No argument from me. What the hell was that wigger thinking when she adopted that POS? Must be some major white guilt.
Go to Fakebook and look up Leanne Depa. She is pleading for her ''son''. The bad part is how many agree with her. That victim needs to put a legal money attachment on everything that Leanne owns. She knew he was not living in reality and sent him to school anyway.
Last edited by Hastings; 12/01/23.
Patriotism (and religion) is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Jesus: "Take heed that no man deceive you." Hebrew Roots Judaizer
It’s called “inclusion”. Put the ones that are about a sine wave off in classes with normal kids with the hope that their behavior will improve.
”.
Big money say that this indoctrinator was all in with this nonsense, until she wasn’t.
Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Give a man a welfare check, a forty ounce malt liquor, a crack pipe, an Obama phone, free health insurance. and some Air Jordan's and he votes Democrat for a lifetime.
Remember when they used to lock crazy dangerous people up in an asylum? We had an old great uncle that came back from WW1 changed for the worse. As he got older he went off the deep end into a paranoia and started exhibiting violent tendencies. The family got ahold of the sheriff and he was toted off to the state facility.
Patriotism (and religion) is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Jesus: "Take heed that no man deceive you." Hebrew Roots Judaizer
This bum had what three other incidents which he was jailed previous ? No big deal slap on the wrist, he knew right from wrong but kept acting the Animal. Suddenly the age changes on the idiot and he becomes a little misunderstood cry baby afraid of consequence?
Talk about playing the system, like so many do now. He will never be anything but a threat to others. For what we see on camera, throw the key away. Lifelong work farm candidate at best. Society owes him nothing.
Osky
A woman's heart is the hardest rock the Almighty has put on this earth and I can find no sign on it.
Teachers and Aides have long been getting kicked, punched, and bitten by kids similar to this. That's why they used to have separate schools for them with padded rooms and plenty of safeguards in place. Bleeding heart liberals decided to intigate kids like this back into the school system and you are seeing the result. This kid was huge, but probably had the mental/emotional capacity of a 6-year-old. I am reading that he was autistic and had about every other disorder in the book. The fact that he was allowed to be in the school without a 1 on 1 aide that could restrain him if needed is negligent and the beaten aide should be suing everyone involved.
There is no question - the kid must be incarcerated, and for more than one reason. He is one among many that are born with and/or develop sociopathic aberrations that make it practically impossible for them to live in normal settings with any stability. I can understand the basis for the pleadings of the adoptive mother but, in reality, there is no good basis for what she wants. A society cannot operate a rational and just system if trying to provide for all individual "wants", no matter how sincere.
It is not difficult to understand the reasons for such bad behavior when one considers the deficiencies of the guilty person, but such understanding is not a basis for bad decisions. The people who should be punished along with him are those who commit the bad acts of forcing such troubled individuals into situations wherein they cannot function safely and productively.
Why would the mom take in a kid like that? I dunno, Jesus would be a better judge than me.
I’m guessing the mom had no legal choice but to go by what the professionals at the group home said, under penalty of law.
"...if the gentlemen of Virginia shall send us a dozen of their sons, we would take great care in their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them." Canasatego 1744
The teacher is on unpaid administrative leave and getting by from help and donations given to her. Seems the school system didn’t even care enough to provide her salary while she recovers. She should sue the parent and school system to make examples out of both of them.
Seems some kind of secure mental institution would be a better answer than a penitentiary in this case
We used to have Central State Hospital in Milledgeville, Georgia. 19,000 patients and hundreds, if not thousands of doctors, nurses, orderlies etc. Central State looked like a college campus, dozens of big brick buildings spread out over a couple miles. It was the only state mental hospital in Georgia.
This would be the perfect place for this screwed-up kid. Big strong orderlies and security cops to wrestle this kid around when he got out of hand, these guys were used to dealing with physically abusive inmates, they did it for a living. If one orderly couldn't handle him, three or four of them could.
If while wrestling a big combative patient, the patient "struck his head" against a door frame, or "struck his head" against the floor a few times, that was just too bad, those things happen some times when subduing a violent patient, especially if he is 6-6 and 325. If this demented kid had beaten up a female inmate, they would have stuck his ass in solitary for a few years. He could have done his 30 years at Central State, obviously he cannot live in society.
Thirty years ago they closed Central State. I don't know where all the patients went, but I bet the ones still alive are now "homeless."
His placement in Public School is a classic example of "but, we have to put them somewhere." The Reg-ed kid today is so screwed. If the he-boon had gone off on a student and the student defended himself, the reg-ed(normal) student would have been suspended.
bkraft
"Four things greater than all things are, Women and Horses and Power and War."
Stop the charade. They need to be locked up. Period... Middle daughter was "emergency certified" as a teacher in a regional school for students who get expelled from "alternative schools" from multiple local districts. Lasted three weeks. Despite all of the "colorful words" while being recruited, ZERO support from the administrators. Minimal security. Several sketchy incidents during the first couple weeks. Finally quit after week three when she was literally run over trying to prevent students in her class from running into the hallway to fight another group of students. Fortunately, not seriously injured. Family was finally able to convince her that was not her true calling.
Thank God that animal hasn't killed, raped or abused another 'child' at that school. Throw the key away, that POS is a menace at 18y/o--never to be rehab'd.
For some reason he wasn't with his natural mother. She likely was drugged out the whole time she carried him and when she delivered him at some emergency room which is where a lot of them are left and "mom" never checks on them again. His brain was probably fried in the womb. Nonetheless, he can't be put into school or society where he cannot function and his white "mom" needs to understand that it is time to lock him up. She also needs to contact her homeowners insurance to see if her liability coverage will help that poor lady that was almost beaten to death. If it were me I would be suing mom for the damages inflicted by her "child".
Patriotism (and religion) is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Jesus: "Take heed that no man deceive you." Hebrew Roots Judaizer
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