A 6-ft-6, 270-pound male student who was convicted of attacking his female teacher received his sentence on Tuesday.
Brendan Depa, then 17, knocked out teacher’s aide Joan Naydich, 59, in February 2023 for taking his Nintendo Switch game.
Cell phone video showed the brutal assault that left Naydich unconscious on the floor at Matanzas High School in Palm Coast, Florida.
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Brendan Depa then repeatedly stomped on Naydich before punching her 15 times. Several staff members stopped the attack and rescued Naydich.
Depa was arrested and confined to a juvenile facility until his trial.
On Tuesday, Circuit Judge Terence Perkins sentenced Depa to 5 years behind bars and 15 years of supervised probation upon his release.
“Compounding the senseless physical violence was the screaming of obscenities, spitting on Ms. Naydich both before and during the incident,” said Judge Perkins.
Depa, now 18, threw his head back after his sentence was announced.
His adoptive mother, Leanne Depa, begged Judge Perkins to let Brendan go home with her. She reacted with outrage to the 5-year sentence.
Leanne Depa said Depa has autism spectrum disorder. He was also diagnosed with anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
She said the justice system is biased against her son because he’s Black, large, and has a mental disability.
“They are punishing that he is black, they are punishing that he is large and they are punishing his disability,” she said after the sentencing.
“I think he needs help, and I think he needs treatment. But I don’t think he needs to be put away in a prison where he’s going to be taken advantage of or harmed,” she said, according to WESH.
