Florida
Advocates push for cameras in special needs classrooms after arrest of Florida teacher
Protecting special needs classrooms
After the arrest of a Florida teacher accused of hitting a student with special needs, advocates are rallying for support from legislators to get cameras in all special needs classrooms.
TAMPA, Fla. – A teacher has been arrested after being seen on video appearing to strike a student with special needs. One witness told the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office the teacher has been aggressive toward students in the past.
While this incident was caught on camera, that’s not always the case in these situations. It’s why advocates for special needs students are rallying for support from legislators to get cameras in all special needs classrooms.
In CCTV video, you can see 69-year-old Cheryl Andrews, a paraprofessional at Indian Trails Middle School in Flagler County, appear to walk up to a student inside the school cafeteria and strike the student in the back of the head. The report then says Andrews aggressively shoved the student’s head, pulling it backward toward her chest before placing another hand around his face.
A teacher has been arrested after being seen on video appearing to strike a student with special needs. One witness told the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office that 69-year-old Cheryl Andrews has been aggressive toward students in the past.
“My heart goes out for the child. This child is a child with a disability who was not able to even go home and tell mom and dad what happened to them at school,” Autism Society of Florida President Stacey Hoaglund said.
According to the sheriff’s office, the child has disabilities and is non-verbal, which means he doesn’t have the communication skills to articulate what may have happened to him. As Hoaglund explains, about 35 percent of children with autism are non-verbal.
“Our fear from the autism community is that these types of incidences are actually more pervasive than we think that they are because if you have a child who can’t come home and tell you what happened at school, how do you really know? You have to put an enormous amount of trust into the adults that you think are taking care of your child during the day,” Hoaglund said.
READ: Man shot & killed in neighborhood, Hillsborough County deputies investigating
That’s why Hoaglund has been pushing for cameras in all special needs classrooms in Florida. For the last three years, Broward County Schools has been doing so as part of a pilot program which just ended in May. Hoaglund says the results have been promising.
“The teachers found that it protected them as well. We know because we all do a better job if we work in a space that has a camera on us, so we feel like better teaching will go on, more consideration for the children, their emotional responses to things, how to address their behavior concerns,” Hoaglund said.
Hoaglund says she’s hopeful the results will help to pass a bill in the next legislative session requiring cameras in all special needs classrooms.
READ: FEMA official fired for directing workers to avoid homes with Trump signs, Lake Placid mayor reacts
“We really think that there could be better teaching and better learning if there were cameras in the classrooms,” Hoaglund said.
Hoaglund says some of the new members elected have a personal connection to students with special needs. She’s hoping that will help in getting her bill passed.
As for Andrews, detectives say during her interview she told them she did not know why she did this. The Flagler County Public School District confirms she is on paid administrative leave.
STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA BAY:
Florida
FBI says suspects tried to rob Offset outside a Florida casino when he was shot in the leg
The rapper Offset was ambushed by a “large group” of people who tried to rob him outside a Florida casino last week when he was shot in the leg, the FBI said Tuesday.
Federal investigators said that they are still searching for the suspects who assaulted Offset last Monday night outside of Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, just north of Miami. Throughout the assault, a single shot was fired into Offset’s leg before an unsuccessful attempt to remove the rapper’s watch, the statement said. Offset, who rose to fame as part of the influential hip-hop trio Migos, was hospitalized for a couple of days, but swiftly returned to the stage at a performance at a music festival at the University of Arkansas on Saturday.
The suspects fled the scene in two Chevrolet SUVs that went in separate directions: A black Suburban that fled towards Hollywood, Florida, and a Tahoe that fled southbound towards Miami.
Following the shooting, officers detained two people, but law enforcement hasn’t shared evidence to directly tying either one to the shooting.
One of the people detained was rapper Lil Tjay, born Tione Jayden Merritt. He was arrested in connection with an altercation that occurred before the shooting, the Seminole Police Department in Florida said. He was charged with disorderly conduct and operating a vehicle without a valid license. His lawyer, Dawn M. Florio, told The Associated Press last week that Lil Tjay did not have a gun and was not charged with any weapons or gun-related crimes. He was swiftly released after posting bond.
Offset, born Kiari Kendrell Cephus, launched his career with Migos, one of the most popular hip-hop groups of all time. The Atlanta trio is celebrated for their rapid-fire triplet flow, an often-imitated delivery that changed the trajectory of trap.
The group had several multiplatinum selling singles, including “Bad and Boujee,” which went No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart, “Stir Fry,” and “Narcos.” Migos released four full-length albums across their career.
More than three years ago, Offset’s cousin Takeoff, another member of Migos, was shot and killed at a Houston bowling alley.
Florida
Florida teenager charged with sexually assaulting and killing stepsister Anna Kepner on cruise ship
A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder and aggravated sexual abuse in Florida in the 6 November death of his 18-year-old stepsister on a Carnival cruise ship, the US justice department said Monday.
Timothy Hudson was initially charged in February and subsequently indicted on 10 March. But the breadth of the case was not known until a seal was lifted Friday, weeks after US district judge Beth Bloom in Miami said he would be prosecuted as an adult at the request of the government.
Anna Kepner, Hudson’s stepsister, had been traveling on the Carnival Horizon ship with her family. Before the ship was scheduled to return to Florida, her body was found concealed under a bed in a room she was sharing with two other teens, including the younger stepbrother.
The cause of Kepner’s death was determined to be mechanical asphyxia, which is when an object or physical force stops someone from breathing.
Email and voicemail messages seeking comment from Hudson’s attorneys about the charges were not immediately returned Monday. Hudson, whose name was disclosed through his signature on documents filed in federal court, has remained free in the care of an uncle since his arrest in February.
Kepner’s father, Christopher Kepner, released a statement, saying the family was placing “trust in the justice system to pursue the truth with care and integrity”.
“At the same time, we are deeply troubled that, despite the seriousness of the charges, he has not been taken into custody,” Kepner said. “The situation is deeply painful and complex for the entire family.”
In a written statement, US attorney Jason Reding Quiñones said, “Our hearts go out to the victim’s family during this unimaginable loss. A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging serious offenses that allegedly occurred aboard a vessel in international waters.”
Kepner was a high school cheerleader at Temple Christian school in Titusville, Florida, about 40 miles (65 kilometres) east of Orlando. At her memorial service in November, family members encouraged people to wear bright colors instead of the traditional black “in honor of Anna’s bright and beautiful soul”.
Teens are rarely prosecuted in federal court. Hudson pleaded not guilty when he was initially charged in February, though the proceedings were not public because of his age – and neither were court documents. He was seen at the courthouse wearing a ball cap and a hoodie pulled tightly around his face.
A judge on 6 February said Hudson must wear an electronic tether while living with an uncle. The order was changed to allow him to join his father for a few days recently at a landscaping business, newly unsealed court records show.
Prosecutors objected to Hudson’s release, citing dangerousness, and asked a judge Monday to revisit that order now that he has been charged as an adult. Defense lawyers were given a week to respond.
“He committed these crimes against a victim with whom he had no apparent relational strife, and whom he was being raised to view as a sibling,” assistant US attorney Alejandra López said in a court filing.
Florida
16-year-old from Florida charged with sexually assaulting, killing stepsister on Carnival Cruise ship
MIAMI – A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder and aggravated sexual abuse in Florida in the death of his 18-year-old stepsister on a Carnival Cruise ship, the U.S. Justice Department said Monday.
The teen, identified by the government as T.H., was initially charged as a juvenile on Feb. 2, but the case was sealed until U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom ordered that he would be prosecuted as an adult, the department said.
An email and voicemail seeking comment from T.H.’s lawyer about the indictment were not immediately returned.
Anna Kepner had been traveling on the Carnival Horizon ship in November with her family. Before the ship was scheduled to return to Florida, her body was found concealed under a bed in a room she was sharing with two other teens, including the younger stepbrother.
The cause of Kepner’s Nov. 6 death was determined to be mechanical asphyxia, which is when an object or physical force stops someone from breathing.
Kepner was a high school cheerleader at Temple Christian School in Titusville, Florida, some 40 miles (65 kilometers) east of Orlando. At her memorial service in November, family members encouraged people to wear bright colors instead of the traditional black “in honor of Anna’s bright and beautiful soul.”
Teens prosecuted in federal court are extremely rare. T.H. was seen at the Miami courthouse on Feb. 6, wearing a ball cap and a hoodie pulled tightly around his face. But his status at that time was not fully known because his age barred public disclosures by his lawyer, the government or the court.
Experts believe the case is in federal court, and not a state court where teens are commonly prosecuted, because Kepner died in international waters.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
-
Atlanta, GA1 week ago1 teenage girl killed, another injured in shooting at Piedmont Park, police say
-
Georgia1 week agoGeorgia House Special Runoff Election 2026 Live Results
-
Arkansas4 days agoArkansas TV meteorologist Melinda Mayo retires after nearly four decades on air
-
Pennsylvania1 week agoParents charged after toddler injured by wolf at Pennsylvania zoo
-
Milwaukee, WI1 week agoPotawatomi Casino Hotel evacuated after fire breaks out in rooftop HVAC system
-
Ohio9 hours ago‘Little Rascals’ star Bug Hall arrested in Ohio
-
Austin, TX7 days agoABC Kite Fest Returns to Austin for Annual Celebration – Austin Today
-
World1 week agoZelenskyy warns US-Iran war could divert critical aid from Ukraine