By Luz Root
“Brevard County principal was recently arrested for Child Abuse of Special Needs student.”
John Long, 65, was arrested for allegedly pushing and holding a child with special needs on the ground using his knee, according to the sheriff’s office. Long was a principal of a private school called Learning Forward Education Center.
In Florida, Child Abuse is defined as: (1) Intentional infliction of physical or mental injury upon a child; (2) An intentional act that could reasonably be expected to result in physical or mental injury to a child; (3) Active encouragement of any person to commit an act that results or could reasonably be expected to result in physical or mental injury to a child.
For Mr. Long to be convicted of the aforementioned charge, The State Attorney’s Office will have to prove either of the three elements beyond a reasonable doubt.
According to the arrest report, Long was teaching a class when the student was being disruptive and calling another student, using profanity.
Deputies said that on the way to lunch, the principal took the student him by the arm and was kind of moving him away from other children. Long and the student then fell onto the stairs and then the principal put his knee on his back, holding his head down.
However, the Education Center Corporate Attorney disagrees with the Officer’s statements; alleging the picture of the student’s injuries contradict the report. Even though the school is represented by an attorney, as an entity, Long will need an experienced Criminal Defense Attorney to represent him on the pending criminal charges he is facing.
Our defense focus would be on whether this incident was intentional or not. Upon interviewing witnesses, we would be able to gather more information as to how both Long and the student fell onto the stairs and whether Long was acting on self-defense or defense-of-others. We already know that the student was causing a commotion in the class and insulting other peers. It would be helpful to know if this commotion continued outside and whether the student acting up was attacking other students.
If you or a family member find yourself charged with a crime, do not hesitate to contact the experienced lawyers of The Smith and Eulo law firm at 352-WIN-4YOU. for your FREE consultation.