A school employee in Florida was taken into custody on Wednesday for reportedly placing a student in a chokehold. Brandon Tyrone Henry, affiliated with Wimauma Youth Academy, is facing charges of aggravated child abuse, as per WFLA’s report.
The incident allegedly occurred on January 17, when Henry is accused of assaulting a student as they exited a classroom, according to details from a pretrial detention motion obtained by the news station.
“As the victim was leaving that classroom, the defendant came up behind him and put him in a rear chokehold (right arm around the victim’s neck),” the document stated. “The defendant held the victim in this position for approximately ten seconds, rendering the victim unconscious.”
The adolescent tumbled, resulting in a nearly severed tongue, as stated in the document. Additionally, he sustained cuts on his left eye, cheek, and mouth.
He was transported to Florida HCA South Shore Hospital, where the Tampa Bay Times reported that he underwent multiple stitches for his injured tongue. A video of the incident is also mentioned in the motion.
There is no bail placed on Henry. “There are no conditions of release reasonably sufficient to protect the community from the risk of physical harm,” the document claimed.
Wimauma Youth Academy functions as a Florida Department of Juvenile Justice center catering to males aged 14 to 18. Henry, who had served as a shift supervisor at the facility since 2012, faced initial placement on unpaid administrative leave.
Subsequently, he was terminated upon administrators viewing a video capturing the incident, as reported by a spokesperson from Wayne Halfway House to the Times.
“We have well-established conduct standards for staff and regularly reinforce those standards within all the facilities that we manage,” Hall stated.
