Julious Johnican, a former teacher at George Washington Carver Montessori School 87 in the Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) district, faces a felony charge for neglect of a dependent.

The charge arises from an incident where Johnican allegedly encouraged a student to attack another while recording the fight on his cell phone. This recorded altercation is central to a lawsuit filed last month, alleging that Johnican allowed and encouraged students to repeatedly abuse a 7-year-old student. The video was discovered coincidentally during a meeting.

Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears emphasized the need for accountability, stating, “As parents, we place trust in our teachers and the adults in power to keep our children safe, and there should be serious consequences when they fail to meet that standard and engage in or encourage dangerous behavior,” Mears said in a statement.

Those changes were covered by Indy Kids Winning previously.