On the morning of February 21, Depa brutally assaulted a Matanzas High School employee who tried to stop him from using his Nintendo Switch in class. While it was originally reported that the victim, Joan Naydich, confiscated his handheld, the paraprofessional later denied that claim, testifying how she simply asked him why he was playing video games in class. The inquiry reportedly irritated her former student, who started calling her expletives, prompting Naydich to head for the dean's office. It was then that Depa assaulted her, according to an injunction for protection petition that she later filed against the defendant.
Depa appeared in front of Circuit Judge Terence Perkins at the Kim C. Hammond Justice Center in Bunnell on Monday, October 30. He entered an open no-contest plea, meaning he will accept any conviction stemming from the case, but avoid a factual admission of guilt. The video footage of the brutal incident that was captured by a school security camera was the key piece of evidence that facilitated the proceedings. Judge Perkins scheduled Depa's sentencing for January 31 2024, as first reported by The Daytona Beach News-Journal.
