In one horrific moment, a 6ft 6in tall student who weighs 270lbs knocked unconscious and severely beat a female teaching assistant for taking his handheld Nintendo Switch from him.
The 17-year-old Matanzas High School student of Palm Coast, Fla., who was unnamed because of his age, violently assaulted the teaching assistant after telling another student he was going to “kill” her because she did that to him on Tuesday game had taken away.
“It could have been murder,” Sheriff Rick Staly told WESH 2.
In surveillance footage released by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the hulking student can be seen rushing towards the teacher, who has also not been identified, before throwing her across the room, her body flying several feet.
She hits the ground headfirst, knocking her out. The student with special needs immediately begins kicking her before kneeling to strike her in the head and torso.
In surveillance footage released by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the hulking 17-year-old Palm Coast student is seen rushing towards the teacher, who has also not been identified, before throwing her across the room
She hits the ground headfirst, knocking her out. The student with special needs immediately begins kicking her before kneeling to strike her in the head and torso
Another woman runs towards the student and grabs his arm, but is unable to pull him away from the assistant before several others rush in to pull him off of them. Even after they manage to knock him to the ground, he still sticks out his leg to smack them a few more times.
It takes five members of staff to restrain and pull him away from her body while he fought her.
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office found the woman with “severe injuries” and she was taken to the hospital for treatment.
The teenager claimed he would “beat her every time she takes his game from him” and spit on the teacher as MPs escorted him, the arrest report said.
The student was arrested and taken to Sheriff Perry Hall inmate detention center before being turned over to the Juvenile Justice Department. He was charged with aggravated assault, which carries a prison sentence of up to five years in Florida.
Her body flew several meters before she was knocked unconscious. The student had said he would “beat her up every time she took the game away from him”. The helper, who started working at the school in 2021, was seriously injured and taken to the hospital
It takes five members of staff to restrain and pull him away from her body while he fought her
The student was arrested and taken to Sheriff Perry Hall inmate detention center before being turned over to the Juvenile Justice Department. He was charged with aggravated assault, which carries a prison sentence of up to five years in Florida
He also faces expulsion from school.
In bodycam footage, the student can be seen asking officers if he is “going to jail” as they handcuff him at school.
‘For how long?’ asked the students.
“I don’t know,” the officer replied.
Moments later, he told officers, “F**k you, I don’t want to go to jail. I have more important things to do,” before accusing her of abusing him.
Staly called the ordeal “absolutely appalling and utterly inappropriate.”
The Matanzas High School student (pictured), who was not named due to his age, violently assaulted the teaching assistant after telling another student he would “kill” her for giving him his $200 dollar bill on Tuesday handheld game had taken away
He also told officers when he was arrested, “F**k you, I don’t want to go to jail. I have more important things to do’
“We hope the victim can recover both mentally and physically from this incident,” he said in a statement. “Our schools should be a safe place – for staff and students.”
Flagler Schools Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt agreed, saying: “Creating a safe learning and working environment on our campus is vital. Violence is never an appropriate response.’
Matanzas High School said it had “no comment” when asked for comment.
The Flagler School Board said at a meeting after the event that they made it a “high priority” to revise the policy to “help with that.”
The teaching assistant has worked in the school district since 2004 and joined Matanzas as a teaching assistant in 2021.