JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The five Ed White High School students arrested after a fellow student was attacked before school Thursday were allowed to leave with their parents or guardians Friday morning, but Circuit Judge David Gooding said they could not have any contact with each other until the case is over.
Keith Bradley, 15; Desontray Davenport, 17; Shawn Johonson, 15; Lashunja Richardson, 16; and Nehmiah Smith, 16, were charged with aggravated battery after being identified on high-definition video of the beating recorded by a surveillance camera, according to Duval County Public Schools.
The parents told News4Jax their boys were good young men, but prosecutors painted a different picture, saying the student they attacked had to be hospitalized with broken bones in his face.
Davenport and Richardson are brothers. Their mother said she could accommodate the judge's special conditions for release, but she's not happy about it.
"I feel like that’s not right because we are family and it’s just us," Lakesha Richardson said. "I feel like I have to push my son away to someone else’s home … because him and his brother got into an altercation with someone. That’s not right."
The surveillance video that led to the teens' arrest was not released, but cellphone video from a parent shows the student on the ground, repeatedly being punched and kicked. Rescue personnel were called and the victim was hospitalized.
The school district said it had initiated due process proceedings for a Level IV code of conduct infraction, which could result in expulsion from school.
“Students and families need to know that I will not tolerate behavior on campus that threatens the safety of other students,” Duval School Superintendent Diana Greene said. “We will use every avenue available to us under the code of student conduct and Florida law to ensure student safety.”
The five teenagers are due back in court on April 23.
At Ed White on Friday, students were still concerned that such a violent beating took place at their school.
"It’s just scary to know that they just up and did that," sophomore Derik Appleton said, who said he is planning to leave a finish high school at Florida Virtual School. "You feel like you're in a war zone, basically. It's just, you have to worry about everything and anything. It's just hard to focus on your work."
A DCPS spokeswoman said if students are concerned, they should speak with school administrators or the principal. If they're still not satisfied, they can contact the district's regional administration.