Florida Dem Senate Hopeful, Joshua Weil Accused of Slamming Student to Ground, tormenting female colleague

WFB: As a public school teacher, a Florida Democrat received a suspension after he “slammed” a student to the ground, employment records obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show.

Joshua Weil launched his Senate campaign against Republican Marco Rubio in December 2020, touting his status as “a proud father, a high school math teacher, and Florida’s progressive choice for U.S. Senate in 2022.” Employment records from Weil’s time at Orlando’s Orange Youth Academy, however, show that the Democrat’s teaching background may impair his quest for federal office, not strengthen it.

According to emails obtained by the Free Beacon, Weil faced a three-day suspension in July 2015 after he “slammed” a student to the ground. The school’s incident report confirms the ordeal, stating Weil “grabbed student by neck, threw to ground, left bruise on student’s head.” In an interview with school officials, Weil described the student as “one of the smaller kids in the class” and acknowledged that he “picked him up by his collar” and “brought him to the ground.” While Weil claimed he only engaged because the student was “slapping and hitting” him, the student said he merely “grabbed Mr. Weil’s arm to speak to him,” according to school records.

Weil campaign spokeswoman Angelize Colon said Weil “continues to have great regret to this day” over the incident. She said the school’s “staff and security” were “unable to respond” after the student began “striking” Weil, who then “attempted to restrain the student to the best of his abilities.” Colon also noted Weil’s suspension was “retroactively reduced” to one day.

But the incident was not the first time Weil was subject to a complaint as an Orange Youth Academy teacher. According to a March 2015 email, Weil repeatedly tormented a female colleague, who said the behavior made her “very uncomfortable” and negatively impacted her work. On multiple occasions, the colleague said, Weil used a “stick” to physically “prod” her. Weil would also block the teacher’s “doorway with his body” to prevent her from leaving her classroom—during one incident, records show, Weil told his colleague she “couldn’t leave” and physically “poked” her as she tried to unlock her door. On another occasion, Weil accessed his colleague’s computer to change her screensaver to a picture of himself, which she called an “invasion of my privacy.” more