A man charged with assaulting a woman and her 12-year-old son with autism in Fort Lauderdale has an extensive criminal history that goes back to the 90s, records showed.
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Hutch Benjamin, 44, was charged with two counts of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon for the assault that was caught on camera.
According to Fort Lauderdale Police, at around 7:30 a.m., the mother and her 12-year-old son were walking in the 1000 block of Northwest Fifth Avenue when an unknown person hit them with a blunt object. The suspect then fled the area.
Surveillance video released by police shows the pair being attacked by a man carrying what the mother described as either a cane or a bat.
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Court records show he’s spent much of the last 25 years in prison for violent crimes, including aggravated battery, aggravated assault, attempted robbery and various drug-related charges.
After being arrested last October for violating probation in an armed robbery case, he pleaded no contest and was released from jail on May 6.
Court records also mention a history of mental illness.
In March, his defense attorney filed a motion arguing Benjamin “has been diagnosed with unspecified schizophrenia, bipolar type.”
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