Brendan Depa, the Matanzas High School student recorded in a viral video brutally beating a teacher's aide, was sentenced Tuesday to five years in state prison followed by 15 years of probation.
Depa, who turns 19 Aug. 22, has pleaded no contest to a charge of aggravated battery on a school board employee.He faced up to 30 years in prison.
Assistant State Attorney Melissa Clark presented her case during the first part of the sentencing hearing May 1.
Depa was 17 on Feb. 21, 2023, when he attacked Joan Naydich, a paraprofessional assigned to him at Matanzas High School in Palm Coast.
According to state sentencing guidelines, the lowest permissible sentence for Depa would have been 34.5 months in prison, which worked out to 2.87 years.
Leanne Depa disagrees with prison sentence
After the hearing, Leanne Depa criticized the sentence.
"They are punishing that he is Black, they are punishing that he is large and they are punishing his disability," she said.
She said the school district failed Brendan Depa and that his behavioral plan was not followed.
"I think he needs help. Absolutely. 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," Leanne Depa said.
Judge sentences Brendan Depa to state prison
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins sentenced Brendan Depa to five years in state prison followed by 15 years of probation.
Depa swung his head back when the judge announced the 60-month sentence.
As he pronounced sentence, Perkins said that he had not heard Brendan Depa express remorse at any time. Depa turned to his attorney and motioned to a paper but the attorney said something to him. The attorney earlier had said Depa wanted to make a statement to the court but had changed his mind.
Perkins cited the violence of the attack and said it was not an isolated incident, citing Depa's violent history.
Everyone has seen the video, Perkins said.
"It captures the senseless, extreme violence in a very troubling way."
The judge cited testimony from a state witness who said Depa knew what he did was wrong.
"Compounding the senseless physical violence was the screaming of obscenities, spitting on Ms. Naydich both before and during the incident. He pursued her down the hallway, pushed her so violently from behind that she flew through the air and was knocked unconscious when she landed in the hallway floor. He then proceeded to kick her, then jump on top of her, striking her in the head and body more than 15 times," Perkins said.
Perkins adjudicated Depa guilty. Perkins also ordered that the Department of Corrections conduct a full mental health assessment of Depa and develop a care plan for him.
Depa will get credit for the time he has spent in jail, approximately 17.5 months.
Defense attorney: Disability is not Depa's fault
Teifke said the State Attorney’s Office could have kept the case in the juvenile system but opted to move it into the adult system.
Depa has his head laying on the desk. His attorney’s assistant has her hand on his back.
Now Depa has raised his head a few inches off the desk.
Teifke asks whether the public interest requires a prison sentence. He said the video was shocking but add to that that this is a disabled child and look at how perception shifts.
Teifke refers to testimony that the attack was a manifestation of a disability.
Judge Perkins asked whether Teifke is saying that anyone who suffers autism is aggressive and violence. Teifke said no.
Perkins said that was his point.
Teifke said that sentencing Brendan Depa to prison is not a graduated sentence.
Teifke said that the adult prison’s goal was to stabilize inmates to get them back into the general population, not for them to have long term success.
Teifke said that Depa had been “gifted this.”
“It’s not his fault,” Teifke said.
Clark is back up saying Depa must be punished.
"He almost killed a woman. He should be punished for that," Clark said.
She said Brendan Depa can provide treatment for him. Clark is asking for seven years in prison.
Seven years followed by a long term of probation, Clark said.
At the defense table, Depa appeared to praying, crossing himself again.
— Frank Fernandez
State attorney: 'The lack of remorse is frankly just shocking'
Judge Perkins gave both the prosecutor and the defense 15 minutes each.
Clark said Depa was still acting violently at a residential treatment facility. Clark said that before the attack on Naydich, Depa was involved in a fight on a school bus. But Clark said that he has shown the ability to control himself and had 97 days of good behavior at the group home. She said Depa had three disciplinary reports while at the Flagler County jail and only one having to do with violence.
He pummeled an unconscious woman, Clark said.
“I counted 15 times that he punched her while she was completely unconscious,” Clark said.
“But for those five people pulling him off, I don’t think she would be here today,” Clark said.
He chased her and viciously attacked her, she said.
While Clark speaks, Depa is bent over on his seat, looking straight down.
Clark said Naydich suffered broken ribs and a concussion and has PTSD from the attack; she can no longer work at a school.
Depa made the sign of the cross and sat up in his chair.
Clark continues saying that Depa threatened to kill Naydich and later blamed Naydich for the attack and said no one pulled him away faster.
“The lack of remorse is frankly just shocking,” Clark said.
"He is dangerous," Clark said.
Naydich is sitting in the gallery.
Clark said the primary purpose of the judicial system is punishment and Depa should be punished.
Clark is asking for prison followed by a long term of probation.
— Frank Fernandez
Last witness testifies in Depa's sentencing
A juvenile probation officer is now testifying. He said that Depa had never been on juvenile probation or committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice or prison. However, he said Depa successfully completed a juvenile diversion program in 2019 for two misdemeanors. He did not give any details.
The juvenile probation officer agreed with Teifke that the goal for Depa was rehabilitation.
Clark asked the probation officer whether they had reviewed records from the group home when they recommended youthful sanctions for Depa.
Clark asked that once Brendan Depa turned 21 DJJ would no longer have jurisdiction over him.
He agreed they could not require him to do anything.
— Frank Fernandez
State Attorney tries to establish why Depa should go to prison
State Attorney Melissa Clark asked psychologist Julie Harper, just as she asked autism expert Kimberly Spence, about records that Depa head-butted staff, punched a doctor and threw a chair while at a residential treatment facility in South Carolina.
Harper said she had seen the records.
Clark asked about Depa acting violently at the Palm Coast group home.
Clark said he ripped a door off a wall at the home and charged at staff. He got into a fight with another member.
Depa seemed upset, gesturing with his handcuffed hands as he spoke to Teifke. Depa then spoke quietly to his attorney’s assistant. He is listening silently to her now.
Through her questions, Clark was trying to establish that the prison system could provide the services Depa needs.
Teifke asked follow-up questions about what kind of services Depa would receive if he were sent to prison.
Harper said she sees people in prison as part of her practice. She said the therapy is not geared toward the future. She said they don’t reference past diagnoses and are focused on the present without the benefit of the history of the case.
— Frank Fernandez
Psychologist: Depa is medicated for major depressive disorder
Julie Harper, a licensed psychologist, is now testifying for the defense via Zoom.
Harper said the brain is not fully formed until about the age of 25. Brendan Depa was 17 at the time he beat Naydich.
She said a person of that age would be more likely to react emotionally rather than rationally.
She said that personality is still developing and not established at the age of 17.
She added that youth are more likely to consider immediate rewards as they are making decisions.
Harper described 17 as a middle-adolescent period.
She said there was plenty of evidence that Depa was developing like other 17-year-olds.
While Harper testifies, Depa watches her on the large screen on the wall. At times he leans over and talks to his attorney’s assistant.
Harper said Depa has exhibited irritably which is often a way a child will express depression, and noted he is receiving medication for a major depressive disorder. He is also receiving medication for anxiety.
She said she thought this was “the perfect storm” of the combination of environmental support falling out and Depa being overrun by symptoms.
She said that after a month at Echo, they did not need to use mechanical restraints on him and that showed he was responding.
She said that she saw signs that Depa is making progress and no one is giving up on him. She said that when he did have problems, including this case, the behavior was considered a manifestation of his disability.
Teifke asked if a placement with the Department of Juvenile Justice could address his needs.
Harper said there would be a greater staff to defendant ratio at juvenile justice than in an adult prison.
“He will be warehoused essentially just waiting for sentence to be over,” Harper said regarding state prison.
Clark began by asking Harper about her fees. Harper said she charged $200 per hour and she had worked about 16 hours on the case. Harper also charged $80 an hour waiting time when she is scheduled to testify. She has at least several hours of waiting on the case.
— Frank Fernandez
Autism expert takes stand in Depa's sentencing
Clark said that if Depa is placed with the Department of Juvenile Justice, it would lose custody of him when he turns 21 in two years. Clark asked Spence if she would agree that two years is not enough time for the treatment he needs.
Spence said it would be hard for her to say and then repeated that the treatment he has received has not been adequate.
Clark also said Depa spent a year at the South Carolina facility when he was 14 or 15 and it didn’t prevent his behavior.
Teifke followed up and asked Spence if there was any other record other than the self-reported behavior of the conduct, such as hurting animals.
Not that she saw, Spence replied.
Spence’s testimony has concluded.
Teifke has recalled Leanne Depa to the stand to talk briefly about the harming of animals.
Leanne Depa said she has cats. She said Depa was upset when one of the cats died.
She said Depa has never harmed an animal.
Clark said she did not have any questions for Leanne Depa.
Julie Harper, a licensed psychologist, is now testifying for the defense by Zoom.
— Frank Fernandez
State attorney: Depa admitted to hurting an animal
Clark is now cross-examining Spence.
In response to Clark, Spence said she is paid $250 per hour and has worked about 30 hours on the case.
Clark asked her if she saw other disorders listed for Depa, including oppositional defiant disorder and intermittent explosive disorder. Clark said yes.
Clark reviewed a list of Depa’s aggressive acts at the residential facility in South Carolina, at the group home in Palm Coast and with family.
Clark asked Spence if she reviewed the Department of Juvenile Justice’s assessment of Depa.
Clark asked Spence about things that Depa had told DJJ that he had done in the past: started a physical fight two or more times; used a weapon in a fight; damaged or destroyed other person’s property on purpose; lied; stole items. Spence said that she has had autistic people who have done those things.
Clark also said that Depa had responded affirmatively that he hurt an animal.
Spence said she did not speak to Depa about that or why that would happen.
Clark asked if she would agree that was concerning behavior. Spence agreed.
Brendan Depa turned to Teifke and spoke to him during the cross examination.
— Frank Fernandez
Witness: Crisis team once required to confiscate a device from Depa
Kimberly Spence is an expert on training law enforcement in dealing with individuals with autism and works part-time at the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities at the University of Central Florida.
She has trained first responders, including law enforcement officers, in dealing with individuals with autism and other disabilities, intellectual or learning disabilities, and different types neurological issues. She has also been a special education teacher.
Spence said she believes that Depa needs mental health intervention by people who understand autism. She said she believes Depa needs substantial support right now.
She said her understanding is that both of Depa's biological parents have bipolar disorder.
Spence said it appeared to her that the Echo group home in Palm Coast was aware of his history, including aggression and difficulty with his sister and concerns by family.
The group home staff at Depa's IEP meeting expressed concerns about his use of electronics and said that these are his triggers, which are things that could upset a student to the point of acting out.
Spence said Depa has a lot of anxiety when dealing with change and when a routine is not followed. She said he doesn’t have friends except for the people who have spoken for him during today's hearing.
Spence said Depa became very fixated on computer games. She said his focus on electronics and gaming caused a lot of problems at Matanzas High School.
Depa sat up and watched Spence as she testified. He later spoke to his attorney and drank some water.
Spence said Depa had a long history of issues stemming from the confiscation of his electronic devices, including the need to bring a crisis team at a group home to take an electronic device from him.
Spence said it was shocking to her that any school or program would allow him to have a gaming system, given that history.
She said that anxiety and depression seem to be life-long issues for Depa along with the autism.
She said she did not think Depa was assigning blame to Naydich when he said previously she could have done things better. She said Depa was rather stating what he believed happened.
She said many children with autism express aggression.
Spence said she agreed with another psychiatrist who believed the incident was a manifestation of his disability.
She said it was clear that Depa has had difficulty at times managing his emotions.
Teifke asked Spence if she believed Depa was “inherently dangerous.”
She paused and asked him for more information. Teifke asked if whether with properly trained individuals would he be dangerous.
She said that with proper staff and people knowing how to manage his behavior and having a stable living environment that should dramatically reduce concerns about behavior.
Teifke asked whether it would be appropriate for a paraprofessional dealing with Brendan Depa to not be aware of strategies to deal with him.
Spence said absolutely not and then said “dangerous.”
— Frank Fernandez
School community officer's never met Depa, but would be willing to adopt him
Jerome Powell Jr., a school community officer with Hillsborough County, is now testifying via Zoom for the defense.
Powell said he heard about the case through social media.
He said his role is similar to a paraprofessional. He said he has a 22-year-old autistic son.
He said having an autistic son was a challenge at first. He said his son went from two to three-word sentences to one day waking up and not being able to talk.
Teifke asked him about the importance of individual approaches to children with autism or other diagnosis.
“It’s very important. Every student or kid is different, and you realize you really have to earn their trust,” Powell said.
He said he and Depa make an effort to communicate every day.
Powell said he lives a couple of minutes away from the Depas.
He said he would be willing to adopt Depa “if need be.”
“He’s an awesome human being and he is worth fighting for,” Powell said.
He said he would not have concerns for his safety or anyone else’s.
Prosecutor Clark asking if he has ever met Depa in person. Powell said no, just phone calls and letters.
Powell’s testimony has now concluded.
— Frank Fernandez
Jail volunteer said he wants Depa to meet his grandchildren
Lopes said Depa passed the reading and writing and is on track to do the science and social studies portion. Lopes said math has been very difficult for Brendan and he has asked for extra work to help him master that.
He said Depa is determined to get his GED.
“He wants to make his mother proud, that he feels he has let her down,” Lopes said.
“Brendan is a much different person than the person I met eight months ago,” Lopes said.
He said Depa was more mature, more patient.
Lopes said that Depa has made him a better person.
Lopes said there was never a moment when he was afraid of Depa.
In response to Teifke, he said that for many autistic children, routine is critical.
While Lopes testified, Depa at one point was writing something. At another point, he was looking at the screen showing viewers on Zoom.
Lopes said that the correctional deputies are protective of Depa.
Lopes said Sheriff Rick Staly and Daniel Engert, the chief at the jail, have made it the best situation possible for those there and the visitors.
Lopes said that if Brendan is placed nearby he would happily continue doing what he has been doing.
He said he is looking forward to his grandchildren meeting Depa. He said he wanted them to see why this is so important.
Teifke has completed his questioning.
Clark said she had no questions for Lopes.
— Frank Fernandez
Retired teacher, jail volunteer takes the stand
Eugene Lopes, a retired special education teacher, is now testifying. He said he started working with Brendan Depa in November 2023 three days a week for at least two hours a day at the jail. But there were weeks he would see him five times a week. He said it was all voluntary work.
Teifke asked if he had been the subject of student behavior.
Lopes said he has been spit on, punched and kicked and been called fat a couple of times and he thinned down. He said he has been bit.
Lopes said it was very important to go back to your training, rather than slapping at the kid and telling them to get off.
“Don’t escalate,” Lopes said.
Lopes said taking the right approach works but not 100% of the time.
Teifke asked specifically about Brendan.
“Like everyone else when I saw the video I was appalled,” Lopes said.
He said he wondered how this could have happened and then he read an article by Leanne Depa.
He said he contacted Leanne Depa and asked if there was something he could do.
Lopes said he had spent his life advocating for parents and students and in this case he went the other way based on a video.
Lopes said that Daniel Engert, the chief at the jail, was his “hero.”
He said Engert brought Brendan Depa in to see Lopes for the initial meeting. Engert asked Depa if this was something he wanted to do and Depa agreed.
Lopes said that Depa was guarded.
He said Depa asked him “Everybody hates me, why don’t you?”
Lopes said Depa had to trust him and he had to trust Depa.
Lopes said he had to learn about the GED program.
He said Brendan was "a very gifted writer."
— Frank Fernandez
Leanne Depa concludes testimony
Clark asked Leanne Depa about one of the facilities she had researched, called Flyland, and whether it was a secure facility. Leanne Depa said she was told it was a residential facility. Clark said she didn't answer the question. Leanne Depa said she was answering it as best as she could.
Clark asked why Brendan Depa didn’t return home and remained at the group home.
She said Brendan wanted to stay at Matanzas High School and graduate.
"I never wanted Brendan across the state," Leanne Depa said.
Clark referred to Leanne Depa’s previous testimony that Brendan Depa had started reading at age 4, saying he was intelligent.
Leanne Depa said intelligence was one of Brendan Depa’s strengths.
— Frank Fernandez
Leanne Depa’s testimony is now concluded.
Eugene Lopes, a retired special education teacher who has been working with Depa at the Flagler County jail, is now on the stand.
— Frank Fernandez
State attorney: Depa punched a doctor, attacked residents in group home
Assistant State Attorney Melissa Clark cross-examines Leanne Depa.
Clark said that Brendan Depa punched a doctor and head-butted staff at the residential facility in South Carolina.
Clark asked Leanne Depa if she was aware that Brendan Depa had attacked other residents at the group home in Palm Coast, including one who needed medical treatment. Leanne Depa said she was aware of some problems at the beginning.
Clark also said Brendan Depa had touched a woman driving him to school.
Brendan Depa reacted as if surprised by Clark’s comment and turned his head to his attorney and his attorney’s assistant. He then said something to the attorney’s assistant.
— Frank Fernandez
Leanne Depa: 'Brendan, he's had a hard life'
Teifke asked Leanne Depa, Brendan Depa's adoptive mother, about his possible sentence.
“The state of Florida wants to put Brendan in prison. Do you think that’s a good fit?” Teifke asked.
Leanne Depa said it would not be and that he would not do well in prison. She said Depa spent six months confined in Jacksonville before his transfer to the Flagler County jail. He was confined all but one hour of the day, she said.
She said his medication was stopped cold turkey while he was incarcerated.
She said in prison inmates would see Depa was different and try to use him to accomplish things. At that point Clark objected saying Leanne Depa lacked “foundation.” Perkins sustained the objection.
Teifke asked Leanne Depa whether she had testified that she feared for Depa's survival in prison.
“I did,” she said.
Teifke said the judge could commit Depa to the Department of Juvenile Justice instead of prison. Teifke also asked about house arrest.
Leanne Depa said she has explored options, such as group homes and found one 20 minutes from her house in the Tampa area with a bed available now. She said they have screened Depa and met him online.
She said she talks to Depa every day now. She said he could also return home. She said things have settled down and her daughter is no longer living at home. She said “house arrest” could work. She said she has a support network at home, including a parent who has an autistic child who has offered to help.
Teifke asked if there was anything she would like to tell the judge.
“Brendan, he’s had a hard life,” she said.
Leanne Depa said Depa started out in foster care, and he felt abandoned by his family. Depa has had to struggle with autism. She said she was able to manage Depa at home except for the one year that her family had to deal with medical emergencies from her husband and daughter.
“I beg you to let him come home with me. I want my son back,” Leanne Depa said looking at Perkins.
The sentencing hearing is now in the mid-morning break.
— Frank Fernandez
Leanne Depa continues testimony in Brendan Depa's sentencing
Leanne Depa said the Agency WithPersons with Disabilities recommended that rather than go straight home after time in a South Carolina residential facility, Brendan Depa should go to a group home first. But before that happened, Leanne Depa said her husband suffered a massive heart attack.
She said the South Carolina facility just added to the medication.
She said it’s an intensive behavioral group home that can accept Level 6 clients, meaning he needs “substantial support.”
Teifke asked whether she disagreed with a state witness who testified that Brendan needed a lower level of support.
Assistant State Attorney Melissa Clark objected saying Leanne Depa was not qualified to respond to a psychological opinion. Perkins sustained the objection.
She said when she learned Depa was going to go to a public school, she was very concerned. Echo, the group home in Palm Coast, reassured her.
She said the group home was managing him, although he had to be restrained at one point.
She said she asked if someone from Echo could go with Depa to school, but she said she was told no.
She said that Depa remained on multiple psychiatric medications.
She said staff at Echo were trained, including on how to deescalate.
She said Depa started attending Matanzas High School in Palm Coast in March 2021. She said Depa had an IEP, an individualized education plan.
She said at the IEP meeting she expressed her concerns about him attending public school.
She said she informed the school of Depa's verbal and physical aggressions and informed them of all his triggers, which can easily cause him to escalate.
Those triggers include being corrected in front of others, noise, being hungry, and “electronics was a huge trigger.”
Joan Naydich, the victim in the beating, stated previously that Depa became angry after he was told by his regular teacher that he could no longer take his electronic game to another class. Naydich had texted the teacher that Depa had taken the gaming system out and disrupted class.
Leanne Depa said she has seen him use profanity before and say "I’m going to kill you" before.
She said he had never followed through on that threat.
Teifke asked her if she believed that was part of Depa's diagnosis.
Prosecutor Clark objected saying she was not qualified to answer that and Perkins sustained the objection.
Leanne Depa said that a “manifestation” meeting at the school was held shortly after “the incident.”
At the meeting, they determined that the behavior was a manifestation of Brendan Depa’s disability. His various diagnoses were part of the discussion at the meeting.
— Frank Fernandez
Depa's adoptive mother describes his childhood fears, diagnoses
Leanne Depa said Brendan Depa was reading at an early age; he became fascinated with a dictionary and his vocabulary surpassed hers.
Leanne Depa said Brendan Depa was also diagnosed with anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
She said he had a lot of fears, including stickers on bananas.
She said some of the medications from the age of 4 were for autism.
She said at the time that she felt autism was such a harmful diagnosis that she did not want him diagnosed.
She said homeschool mothers watched out for Brendan. One would hold his hand at church and give him a blanket and it was tight community.
While she spoke, Brendan Depa would sometimes look at a large courtroom screen displaying viewers watching the proceedings on Zoom. Other times, he would look toward the desk.
Leanne Depa said in 2017-18, her mother was diagnosed with cancer and her daughter needed brain surgery. Her face tightened as she held back emotions.
She said that Brendan Depa was on 17 different medications at one point. She said every time he was Baker Acted she would ask the psychologists to see if they could help him.
She said he was over-emotional, reacting quickly, going from happy to upset quickly, and had an unstable mood.
Defense attorney Teifke listed two other disorders, oppositional disorder and intermittent explosive disorder that Brendan Depa was diagnosed with and asked her if aggression was part of it.
“Absolutely aggression is part of it,” she said.
She said people did not know that he was autistic or had other disorders.
“Somebody with autism looks just like you and me,” Leanne Depa said.
She said Brendan Depa was first Baker Acted in 2018. She said professionals told her if he acted out to call 911.
She said she was told the only way to get him into residential treatment, which she said he needed, was to build a paper trail of Baker Acts.
Teifke asked if family were afraid of Brendan.
“I was more afraid for Brendan and his sister together how they were going at each other,” Leanne Depa said.
— Frank Fernandez
Depa's adoptive mother testifies about Depa's childhood
Judge Terence Perkins asked the attorneys to introduce themselves and then noted that he saw that Depa was in the courtroom.
“Good morning, sir,” Perkins said.
Depa looked up, paused and then looked at his attorney who nodded.
“Good morning,” Depa said.
Leanne Depa, an occupational therapist who adopted Depa when he was 5 months old, is now testifying.
She said Depa needed a lot of attention, and struggled in day care because the noise and activity there was really difficult for him.
He was diagnosed with ADHD at an early age. She said he needed to be held all the time.
“It could go form zero to 100 in seconds,” she said about Depa.
She said noise was always a big issue for Depa.
Depa leans back a little in his seat, looks at the table, sometimes looking up.
She said a school psychologist would try to help him. She said he never did well with children that were “handsy” and noise was always a problem.
She took him out of school. She said she would homeschool him. She worked part-time and had a college student that would help him.
She said getting him away from the noisy, “handsy” environment at a public school was good. She said he did better at home.
— Frank Fernandez
