A shocking attack at a luxury Central Florida resort pool ended with a woman in custody after authorities say she forcibly dunked another child underwater in front of stunned guests.
Deputies with the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office said they were called around 4:30 p.m. Friday to the Gaylord Palms Hotel in Kissimmee, following reports of a battery involving a child.
According to a statement from the sheriff’s office, witnesses told investigators that three children had been playing together in the hotel’s pool area when the situation escalated.
“Witnesses reported that three children were playing in the pool when the splashing became aggressive,” the statement reads.
Authorities said 36-year-old Tiffany Lee Griffith of Fort Myers got into the water after becoming upset during the interaction between the children.
Investigators allege Griffith began yelling at a 6-year-old boy after she believed he had dunked her own 6-year-old son underwater.
The sheriff’s office alleged that Griffith “placed her hands on the victim’s shoulders and forcibly dunked him underwater for several seconds.”
Witnesses told deputies the child quickly emerged from the pool and ran out visibly shaken.
According to police, the boy was bleeding from his nose and appeared distressed as he made his way to his parents to report what had happened.
Deputies said Griffith continued yelling after the incident, directing her anger toward the boy’s mother before leaving the pool area.
Hotel staff and witnesses alerted law enforcement, and deputies later located Griffith and placed her under arrest.
“After Tiffany was placed under arrest, she made spontaneous statements expressing remorse for what had occurred,” the police report stated.
Investigators also noted that alcohol may have played a role in the incident.
“It should also be noted that alcohol was believed to be a possible factor in this incident, according to hotel security,” the report added.
During the arrest process, deputies said Griffith was cooperative and demonstrated familiarity with law enforcement procedures.
According to the report, Griffith “understood and agreed to her [Miranda] rights. … She further stated she could recite them due to being a former law enforcement officer.”
Griffith was booked into the Osceola County Jail and charged with aggravated child abuse.
An affidavit provided additional insight into Griffith’s explanation of the encounter.
According to investigators, Griffith told deputies she entered the pool because she believed her son was in danger.
“I was protecting my son,” Griffith told deputies, according to the affidavit.
The affidavit states that Griffith told officers her son is nonverbal and has autism, and that she feared the other child would drown him.
Investigators said they reviewed resort security footage as part of the investigation.
According to the affidavit, the video evidence aligned with the version of events described by witnesses at the pool.
Griffith made her first court appearance Monday, where a judge reviewed the case.
The judge found probable cause for the charge and ordered Griffith held without bond.
The judge also issued a no-contact order, barring Griffith from any interaction with the alleged victim or the child’s family.
In a separate case unfolding in South Florida, a Minnesota mother was arrested after authorities say she attacked the wrong child aboard a Carnival cruise ship while attempting to defend her children.
Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested 38-year-old Paetra Ann Grandsberry of Saint Paul after the Carnival Conquest docked at PortMiami early Monday morning.
According to an arrest report, the incident occurred around 8:30 p.m. Sunday while the ship was on water around the Bahamas.
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Grandsberry allegedly became “extremely upset” after learning that her sons had been involved in an altercation and was speaking with ship security.
The report states that Grandsberry saw a group of children running through a hallway and mistakenly believed one of them was involved in the earlier confrontation.
“Without hessitation (sic), (she) ran away from security and jumped on top of the victim and grabbed him by his collar,” deputies wrote.
The teen later told investigators that he had been walking down the hallway and began running only after noticing a crowd moving quickly.
“During the process of running, the victim advised that (Grandsberry) ran up on him from the back, tackling him to the floor and grabbing him by his collar and pulling him up,” the report stated.
Deputies said Grandsberry later admitted she tackled the teen and used profanity toward him during the encounter.
The victim told authorities he heard Grandsberry calling to her children and accusing him of attacking her sons before he fled to his aunt for safety.
According to deputies, Grandsberry eventually acknowledged that she had mistaken the teen for someone else and walked away after realizing her error.
Authorities said the victim was not injured. The Florida Department of Children and Families was notified.
A Miami-Dade judge later found probable cause for a child abuse charge and ordered Grandsberry held on a $2,500 bond.
Jail records show she was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
In another update involving violence connected to children, Chicago police recently charged seven minors following an attack on a mother who intervened to protect her children near a South Side elementary school.
The incident occurred in November near 106th Street and Bensley Avenue in the South Deering neighborhood.
Police said a 33-year-old woman and her 9-year-old son were walking in the area when a group of children began chasing them, yelling insults and taunting them in an encounter that was captured on video and later circulated online.
The victim, identified as Corshawnda Hatter, was seen in the footage being struck and eventually knocked to the ground.
Police said Hatter and her son were taken to Trinity Hospital in serious condition.
Seven minors were charged with misdemeanor battery. Authorities said the children were referred to counseling services and released.
Those charged included three 10-year-old boys, a 10-year-old girl, an 11-year-old girl, a 12-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl.
Hatter told reporters she had repeatedly raised concerns with school officials about her son being bullied.
“For two years, and they have not done a thing,” she commented. “They see me coming they will run or tell security to tell me they are not there.”
