Former ‘Fight Club’ IPS Teacher to Plead Guilty to Neglect

INDIANAPOLIS — A former Indianapolis Public Schools teacher is set to plead guilty to felony neglect for filming fights involving students, with one recorded video capturing a 1st-grade student beating a special needs student.

According to Tammy Meyer of Metzger Rosta LLP, who has represented the family of one of the victims in the case, Julious Johnican is expected to plead guilty on Aug. 4 to neglect of a dependent, which is a Level 6 felony.

Alleged evidence of abuse

The case against Johnican stemmed from abuse allegations at George Washington Carver Montessori IPS School, where Johnican worked in the fall of 2023. At the time, allegations against Johnican were laid out in a civil lawsuit filed by the family of a special needs 7-year-old student against Indianapolis Public Schools, the district and administrators.

Johnican has since been charged with neglect of a dependent for failing to stop a fight that allegedly happened between the students in his classroom. It happened between September 2023 and October 2023. FOX59/CBS4 originally broke the story on April 17, 2024.

The mother of the child who was allegedly beaten in class had said that Johnican had previously shown her a video depicting her child being attacked by another student during a parent-teacher conference.

The video featured a voice that could be heard encouraging the student to beat up the other. That voice is alleged to have belonged to Johnican. Court documents detailed several other instances where Johnican failed to protect students in his care from being exposed to violence and, in some other cases, he encouraged his special needs students to fight while under his supervision.

Johnican resigned shortly after the allegations became public knowledge. The district had also recommended him for termination at the time.

Another student’s family reported that their daughter witnessed “repeated violence” in Johnican’s classroom. The family said the incident left their child with “lasting fear and anxiety.”

According to previous reports, Johnican was an emergency permitted teacher hired by the district during the COVID-19 pandemic and was not fully certified.

“The most troubling aspect of this case is that these were young children who depended upon
adults to keep them safe,” said attorney Tammy Meyer of Metzger Rosta LLP. “Instead of
receiving protection, these children were exposed to violence, fear, and trauma in a place where
they should have felt secure,” said attorney Catherine Michael of Connell Michael, LLP.

Johnican and IPS were mired in a lawsuit that came to a conclusion in April when IPS agreed to pay a $1,208,500 settlement.

What happens next?

If the plea deal is accepted by the court, Johnican could face anywhere from six months to two and a half years in prison for his Level 6 felony. The change of plea hearing is scheduled to take place in Marion Superior Court 25 on Aug. 4 at 8:30 a.m.

Former ‘Fight Club’ IPS Teacher to Plead Guilty to Neglect was originally published on wibc.com