Lawyer: Teen accused of impersonating P.A. to plead not guilty

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla.,None — An Osceola County teenager accused of impersonating a physician’s assistant will plead not guilty and his attorney spoke to WFTV and painted a different picture of the 17-year-old, who investigators said put lives of patients in danger.

It's the first time Matthew Scheidt's  side of the story has been heard.

Scheidt is charged as an adult, accused of pretending to be a physician’s assistant at Osceola Regional Medical Center and treating patients in the emergency room for two weeks.

Scheidt, along with his attorney, his mother and his sister, sat down with WFTV's Steve Barrett on Wednesday night.

“We were really disappointed that the state decided to charge him as an adult,” said Scheidt’s attorney Mark Longwell. “I don't get it, honestly.”

Longwell said Scheidt is pleading not guilty, and they're taking the case to trial. Longwell said he's confident a jury won't convict the teenager.

“None of the allegations even claim that Matthew did anything for any illicit purpose like trying to get at the pharmacy, or trying to steal property,” said Longwell.

Scheidt was originally charged as a juvenile, but prosecutors bumped him to adult court last week when they filed six felony charges.

Longwell insists his client's actions did not harm any patients, even though investigators said the teen examined patients, handled IV's and, according to sources, performed CPR on patient Alma Amely, who later died.

Scheidt's lawyer would not talk about his defense strategy.

“The facts will be borne out. It would be premature to get into details about that. What I do know is that no one was harmed and there was no criminal intent.”

During the interview, Scheidt said nothing.

“He's smart. He's ambitious. He's caring. He's a good kid," said Longwell.

Scheidt has not been arraigned yet, and there are plans to waive his arraignment. The not guilty plea will be filed in writing.

WFTV