Teenager apologizes in unread letter after assaulting Florida teacher’s assistant
The Florida high school student who brutally attacked a teacher’s assistant via a Nintendo Switch wrote an apology letter to the victim in which he admitted to making a “mistake” that he vowed never to repeat: RadarOnline.com can reveal.
On August 6, Brendan Depa, 18, was sentenced to five years in prison on a felony charge following his attack on paraprofessional Joan Naydich in February 2023 at Matanzas High School in Palm Coast.
In the letter titled “Apology”, which was obtained by NewsNation but never read in court, Depa wrote: “Many people have claimed that I have no remorse for last year’s incident, and that I take no responsibility for my actions.
“This is not true: I am deeply sorry for injuring Miss Joan so seriously and I am glad to see that the injuries I inflicted have left no permanent scars or bruises.”
Since the incident, Depa has been working with a teacher, Gene Lopes, who has reportedly encouraged the teen to work on understanding the effects of his actions.
Lopes said, “He wrote this himself. Brendan is a gifted writer, as you can see from this. So this was all him.”
Security cameras at the school captured Depa running toward the paraprofessional, who turns and sees Depa moments before he pushes her to the ground.
Depa repeatedly stomps on the unconscious teacher before punching her fifteen times. Several staff members then go in to remove him from Naydich and hold him on the ground.
The teen added in his letter: “I recognize that what I did was wrong and take responsibility for my actions. I deeply regret letting my emotions get the better of me and allowing things to happen the way they did.”
During sentencing, Judge Terence Perkins said Depa had no remorse for the attack, noting it was not an isolated incident as the teen has numerous battery charges in the past.
However, Depa argued in his letter that the February 2023 attack and subsequent conviction should not define him.
He continued: “In the choice between letting this incident be destroyed, defined or amplified, I chose to let it amplify me. During my incarceration, I learned coping skills to ensure something like this never happens again.
“I made a mistake – a mistake I will never let happen again – and I’m sorry.”
After the sentencing hearing, Depa’s adoptive mother, Leanne, claimed her son was punished because “he’s black, they punish him for being tall and they punish his disability.”
She told me Daytona Beach News-Journal: “I think he needs help, and I think he needs treatment. But I don’t think he needs to be locked up in a prison where he’s going to be taken advantage of or harmed.”
According to officials, Depa has been diagnosed with autism, ADHD and a mood disorder.
His mother said she has received several offers from hospitals and group homes willing to take her son as an alternative to prison.
She told NewsNation: “He’s scared. To have your child call and cry and say, ‘I don’t want to die’ – it’s horrible.”
