A Florida teachers' aide who was brutally beaten by a 17-year-old student nearly a year ago wants her attacker to spend decades in prison for his crime.
Brendan Deppa, a 270-pound, 6-foot-6-inch autistic man who is now 18 and was tried as an adult, admitted to striking Joan Naidich, pleading “no contest” to one felony count of aggravated battery filed against him after beating. The paraprofessional school after it recommended his Nintendo Switch be confiscated, according to Unilad.
This charge carries a penalty of up to 30 years in prison.
Deepa's victim has been demanding the maximum sentence all along.
“He definitely needs to be in prison,” Naidich told the New York Post. “He should be in prison for what he did to me. I am in my own prison every day I wake up.”
Neidich said she has lost her income and all her benefits since she suffered five broken ribs and a concussion during the beating.
She still has vision and hearing problems, she told the outlet.
She also said supporters of Diba's lenient sentence exaggerate his disability.
“He's not as autistic as everyone thinks,” Neidich said. “They paint a picture of him that he can't think of himself. He's working on his GED in prison and he almost got it.
“His mother drew a picture of him unable to wear socks,” she said.
Leanne Deppa, the attacker's adoptive mother, did not blame Neidich, but said the school district should shoulder some of the blame after she deviated from her student's previously approved treatment plan.
“This should not be a criminal case at all,” she said.
“I don't blame Joan,” she said. “In no way do I blame Joan for what happened. I blame the district. It's a systemic problem. There's not enough funding and there's a shortage of paraprofessionals.”
A video of the incident, which occurred on February 21, 2023, at a Palm Coast, Florida, school showed Brendan Deppa attacking Neidich, knocking her unconscious.
According to the affidavit, Deba struck Neidich in the back and the back of the head about 15 times.
Warning: Some viewers will find the following video disturbing.
Teacher confiscates student's Nintendo Switch during class.
The student then attacked her, kicking and punching her, leaving her unconscious. pic.twitter.com/SeDa7vp6k5
– Peter Lloyd (@Suffragent_) February 24, 2023
Brendan Dyba is scheduled to be sentenced on January 31.
This article originally appeared in The Western Journal.
