OSCEOLA COUNTY, FL – A former police officer out of Florida was charged earlier in December with child abuse after authorities say she held a 6-year-old boy’s head underwater at a hotel pool.
On December 19, police arrested 36-year-old Tiffany Lee Griffith on charges of aggravated child abuse after an incident that allegedly occurred at the Gaylord Palms Hotel in Kissimmee, where police say Griffith forcibly dunked and held a 6-year-old boy's head underwater for several seconds at the hotel pool.
According to the police report regarding the incident, Griffith, who allegedly told responding officers that she was a former law enforcement officer, reportedly grabbed onto the young victim’s shoulders and held him underwater after the child allegedly dunked her son underwater before. When the 6-year-old emerged from the water, he reportedly had a nosebleed and told his parents about the incident.
WPBF 25 News noted in their reporting that the Punta Gorda Police Department in Florida previously had a school resource officer by the name of Tiffany Lee Viola, which public records reviewed by Law Enforcement Today confirm Griffith was previously known by her maiden name “Viola.” The Punta Gorda Police Department did confirm Viola worked for their department between 2013 and 2018, but wouldn’t confirm whether Viola and Griffith are the same.
Punta Gorda Police had highlighted Griffith’s time and efforts at the department in a number of social media posts across various platforms in years past, with such posts making mention of her work as a school resource officer. It’s unclear under what circumstances Griffith left the department back in 2018.
Bond in Griffith’s case was set at $20,000, and she has since posted bond and is free while awaiting trial. During a hearing earlier in December where prosecutors asked the judge to hold the former police officer without bond, Griffith’s attorney, Zach Cantor, claimed the case was “absurd” and that she should only face misdemeanor battery charges.
Per Griffith’s pretrial release conditions, she is not allowed any contact with the victim, nor is she allowed to return to the Gaylord Palms.
On December 19, police arrested 36-year-old Tiffany Lee Griffith on charges of aggravated child abuse after an incident that allegedly occurred at the Gaylord Palms Hotel in Kissimmee, where police say Griffith forcibly dunked and held a 6-year-old boy's head underwater for several seconds at the hotel pool.
According to the police report regarding the incident, Griffith, who allegedly told responding officers that she was a former law enforcement officer, reportedly grabbed onto the young victim’s shoulders and held him underwater after the child allegedly dunked her son underwater before. When the 6-year-old emerged from the water, he reportedly had a nosebleed and told his parents about the incident.
WPBF 25 News noted in their reporting that the Punta Gorda Police Department in Florida previously had a school resource officer by the name of Tiffany Lee Viola, which public records reviewed by Law Enforcement Today confirm Griffith was previously known by her maiden name “Viola.” The Punta Gorda Police Department did confirm Viola worked for their department between 2013 and 2018, but wouldn’t confirm whether Viola and Griffith are the same.
Punta Gorda Police had highlighted Griffith’s time and efforts at the department in a number of social media posts across various platforms in years past, with such posts making mention of her work as a school resource officer. It’s unclear under what circumstances Griffith left the department back in 2018.
Bond in Griffith’s case was set at $20,000, and she has since posted bond and is free while awaiting trial. During a hearing earlier in December where prosecutors asked the judge to hold the former police officer without bond, Griffith’s attorney, Zach Cantor, claimed the case was “absurd” and that she should only face misdemeanor battery charges.
Per Griffith’s pretrial release conditions, she is not allowed any contact with the victim, nor is she allowed to return to the Gaylord Palms.
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