Investigators said witnesses reported that Bryan Schewitz kicked the student during a classroom behavioral incident at Matanzas High School.
PALM COAST, Fla. — A 60-year-old substitute teacher has been charged with child abuse after witnesses told investigators he kicked a student with disabilities during a classroom incident at Matanzas High School, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Bryan Schewitz of Flagler Beach was arrested following an investigation that began Oct. 16, when an assistant principal notified a school resource deputy about the alleged incident. Deputies interviewed two witnesses, the student and Schewitz before arresting him on a charge of child abuse without great bodily harm. Schewitz told investigators the kick was accidental.
One witness told deputies the student was experiencing a behavioral episode when Schewitz forcefully moved the student into a chair. The witness said Schewitz then made the student place his hands on a table and told him that “the gloves are off.” The witness said she believed Schewitz was handling the student too roughly and became uncomfortable with what she saw.
A second witness told investigators that Schewitz kicked the student in the leg. The witness later noticed a large mark on the student’s leg and asked Schewitz what had happened, according to the sheriff’s office. Authorities said Schewitz reportedly responded that the student had kicked him and that he had kicked the student back, saying they were now “square.”
School officials questioned the student about the injury before deputies became involved. The student also said Schewitz had kicked him, according to investigators. Authorities have not publicly identified the student, and the sheriff’s office did not release the student’s age in its announcement.
Schewitz gave investigators a different account of the incident. He said the student had arrived late to class and would not sit down to begin schoolwork. Schewitz told deputies the student began kicking toward him and struck him in the leg, prompting him to extend his foot. He said he accidentally kicked the student while responding to the movement.
Schewitz also told deputies that the student had been walking around the classroom and trying to poke other students with a pencil. He said he placed a hand on the student’s shoulder and guided the student toward an empty chair. Schewitz said he later placed the student’s hands on the table and sternly told him that “the gloves were coming off.”
When investigators questioned Schewitz about the witness’s account that he said he had kicked the student back so they were even, Schewitz initially denied making the statement, according to the sheriff’s office. Deputies said he later expressed uncertainty over whether he had made the remark but continued to maintain that the kick itself was accidental.
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said adults working with children, particularly students who require additional care, are expected to remain calm during difficult situations. Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore said the district takes incidents requiring investigation seriously and that such conduct would not be tolerated on school campuses.
Deputies arrested Schewitz on the child abuse charge and took him to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility. He was later released after posting $2,500 bond. The charge is an allegation, and Schewitz has not been convicted of wrongdoing in the case.
Author note: Last updated October 23, 2026.