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Florida man accused of blinding nurse in brutal hospital beating faces hate crime enhancement charge

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Published  February 20, 2025 5:06pm EST
Florida
FOX 13 News

The Brief

    • A Florida man accused in the savage beating of a nurse faces a hate crime enhancement to second-degree attempted murder charges.
    • Stephen Scantlebury was a Baker Act patient at a Palm Beach hospital when the beating took place.
    • A probable cause affidavit stated that essentially every bone in the nurse’s face was broken during the beating, and she would likely be blind.

PALM BEACH, Fla. - A patient who investigators say broke essentially every bone in a nurse’s face, likely leaving her blind, now faces a hate crime enhancement charge in addition to an attempted second-degree murder charge.

Florida nurse savagely beaten by patient

The backstory:

According to a probable cause affidavit, the nurse was caring for 33-year-old Stephen Scantlebury, a patient who was at Palms West Hospital under a Baker Act, when he attacked her.

The document shows that a witness said Scantlebury jumped on top of his bed and then on top of the nurse.

That witness ran out of the room to get help and when they went back to the room with someone else, the affidavit states that Scantlebury was seen punching the nurse in the face repeatedly while she was on the floor.

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Documents show that when one of the witnesses yelled at Scantlebury, he stopped hitting the nurse and ran out of the room, through the hallway, down a stairwell, across the parking lot and into traffic, where he was taken into custody by responding deputies. 

Stephen Scantlebury is accused of beating a nurse so severely that he essentially broke every bone in her face, according to an affidavit. Image is courtesy of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.

Stephen Scantlebury is accused of beating a nurse so severely that he essentially broke every bone in her face, according to an affidavit. Image is courtesy of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. 

The nurse was taken to another hospital by trauma helicopter in critical condition.

Medical staff stated that essentially every bone in the victim’s face was broken, and she would likely lose the use of both eyes.

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Scantlebury was arrested and underwent a medical clearance. A third witness said Scantlebury had been acting paranoid for the last two days, blaming people in his life for events they had nothing to do with, according to the affidavit.

Hate crime enhancement

What we know:

Hate crime enhancements, if proven, can result in harsher penalties upon conviction. They highlight the motive behind the defendant's actions and their broader impact on the community.

What we don't know:

Investigators have not said why Scantlebury is facing the hate crime enhancement charge.

The Source: This story was written with information from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, a probable cause affidavit and previous FOX 13 News reports. 

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