FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - A father who was arrested during his protest against Broward County Public Schools’ mask mandate has bonded out of jail.
Dan Bauman, 50, appeared before a judge on Thursday morning.
The day prior, cellphone video recorded by a bystander captured the moment Bauman was put in handcuffs.
According to police, Bauman was recording on his cellphone, as he was walking into Fort Lauderdale High School with his daughter, Isabel. That’s when he got into an altercation with another student over the recording.
“My client was actually trying to videotape an encounter with school officials and his own daughter,” defense attorney Cory Strolla said. “An unknown student, judge, walked over and snatched the phone from his hand.”
Police said the student grabbed Bauman’s phone because she didn’t want to be recorded, and Bauman “pushed the child by the shoulder and grabbed her hand and twisting her arm in an aggressive manner.”
He has since been charged with child abuse without great bodily harm.
The 50-year-old was at the high school supporting his daughter Isabel, who refuses to wear a mask to campus.
“I want to be able to go to school, like everyone does, but I can’t wear a mask,” Isabel said. “I can’t breathe in it, and I want to have that choice, but they’re not letting me in.”
“She’s the only kid to stand up and fight this,” Bauman said prior to his arrest. “I mean, look around you, they’re so indoctrinated.”
In court on Thursday, a judge ordered Bauman not to return to the high school unless he is invited. He was also ordered to stay away from the student he allegedly pushed.
Bauman did wear a face covering from the quarantine COVID ward, an area in jail for detainees who refuse to mask up upon arrest.
Cameras captured Bauman walking out of jail at around 12:30 p.m. after posting $5,000 bond. Upon release, he said he was against the COVID-19 vaccine and mask mandates.
“Vaccine manufacturers are exempt from liability for injuries caused by the vaccines,” Bauman said. “Mask mandates are illegal and unconstitutional.”
Meanwhile, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to uphold his stance on mask mandates in schools.
“In terms of health, there’s parents whose kids have not done well wearing the masks all day,” he said. “Obviously, kids with special needs have not done well, kids with autism and then just kids who don’t learn as well. The penalties will be applied to the politicians who violated the law.”
Broward County Public School’s Board Chair Dr. Rosalind Osgood said the mask debate within the district has gone too far.
“I talked to a couple of students at Fort Lauderdale High School that actually witnessed that incident,” Osgood said. “It goes against everything we teach them. Our kids can’t put their hands on each other at school, and we certainly shouldn’t have an adult putting their hands on a student.”
Earlier in August, BCPS decided masks were the only option to protect students, staff and teachers.
“We don’t want to continue going back and forth about protecting our students and taking our salaries away,” Osgood said.
“Let the science speak for itself,” BCPS Interim Superintendent Dr. Vickie Cartwright said.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools has also stood firm on following the science and keeping politics out of their decision-making.
“This mask mandate policy is not a political ploy, and children should not be used as political pawns in this chess game,” M-DCPS Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said. “This is where we ought to draw the line in the sand. We do what’s right for kids. We don’t allow the sanctity of schools to be politicized, and we have a moral and professional obligation to protect the health and well-being of our kids and our teachers.”
Bauman, meanwhile, has had five different trespassing warnings and warnings for stalking.
The judge ruled he cannot return to Fort Lauderdale High School’s campus. It remains unknown what the judge’s ruling will mean for his daughter returning to school.
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