Parents expect their kids to be safe when they’re splashing around at a hotel pool during vacation.
But what happened at one Florida luxury resort shattered that assumption in a matter of seconds.
And police were shocked by what a Florida mother did to a 6-year-old boy at a luxury resort.
Vacation Turns Into Nightmare at Gaylord Palms
Three children were playing together in the pool at the Gaylord Palms resort in Kissimmee, Florida on Friday afternoon.
The splashing got aggressive as kids often do when they’re having fun in the water.
But 36-year-old Tiffany Lee Griffith of Fort Myers wasn’t having it.
Deputies say Griffith entered the pool and began yelling at a 6-year-old boy.
Then witnesses watched in horror as Griffith placed both hands on the child’s shoulders and forcibly shoved him underwater for several seconds.¹
The boy came up from the water visibly upset and bleeding from his nose.
He immediately ran to his parents and reported what happened.
That’s when Griffith allegedly followed the child and started screaming at his mother.
https://twitter.com/Nerdy_Addict/status/2003275268807442452?s=20
Another adult had to physically remove Griffith from the scene before deputies arrived at 4:30 p.m.²
She was arrested and transported to the Osceola County Jail where she’s being held without bond on one count of aggravated child abuse.
Security Footage Destroys Mother’s Defense
Griffith claimed she was “protecting” her 7-year-old son who is nonverbal and has autism.
She told deputies the other boy had been drowning her child and she was defending him.
But security camera footage told a completely different story.
Police reviewed the surveillance video from multiple angles of the pool area.
The footage showed no prior incident involving Griffith’s son being dunked or attacked by the other child.³
What it did show was exactly what witnesses described — Griffith calmly entering the pool, approaching the children, and then forcibly submerging the 6-year-old boy underwater.
When deputies confronted Griffith with the video evidence that contradicted her story, she kept repeating “I was protecting my son.”⁴
She expressed remorse during the interview but stuck to her version of events despite the footage.
Investigators noted that alcohol may have played a role in the incident.⁵
Judge Shuts Down Attorney’s Excuse in Court
Griffith appeared in court over the weekend where her defense attorney tried to argue his way around the charges.
The attorney suggested that Griffith might not be responsible for the child’s nosebleed.
That’s when the judge had heard enough.
“So you don’t think that placing both hands on his shoulders, forcibly submerging him underwater and holding him underwater is sufficient?” the judge asked.⁶
The attorney quickly backed down.
“I would withdraw my argument, I guess,” he said.
The judge ordered Griffith held without bond and prohibited any contact with the victim or his family.
Her next court appearance hasn’t been scheduled yet.
It’s unclear whether Griffith’s own son suffered any injuries during the pool encounter.
Parents teach their children to resolve conflicts with words, not violence.
Adults attacking other people’s children crosses a line that should result in serious consequences.
Griffith had options — she could have pulled her son out of the pool, spoken to the other parents, or called hotel security if she genuinely believed something dangerous was happening.
https://twitter.com/Thefactsdude/status/2002888796354822615?s=20
Instead, she allegedly assaulted a 6-year-old child and then screamed at his mother.
The security footage demolished her excuse about protecting her son.
No prior incident occurred that would justify her actions.
She faces aggravated child abuse charges that carry serious prison time if convicted.
This wasn’t a parent disciplining their own child or even breaking up an actual fight between kids.
This was an adult allegedly attacking someone else’s 6-year-old because children were playing rough in a pool.
Parents in Fort Myers expressed shock when they heard about the incident.
“That’s still a child, you know?” one mother told reporters. “You could have reacted in a different way.”⁷
Griffith sits in jail without bond while that 6-year-old boy and his family try to process what happened during what should have been a fun vacation.
¹ Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, “Aggravated Child Abuse Arrest,” Facebook, December 22, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Samira Asma-Sadeque, “Mom Allegedly Held a 6-Year-Old Underwater Because of ‘Aggressive’ Splashing in Luxury Fla. Hotel Pool,” People Magazine, December 22, 2025.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ Madilyn Destefano, “Woman charged with aggravated child abuse after allegedly holding boy underwater in Kissimmee resort,” WESH 2, December 23, 2025.
⁶ Malcolm Shields, “Woman charged after holding child underwater in Central Florida hotel pool, deputies say,” WPBF 25 News, December 22, 2025.
⁷ “Fort Myers mother accused of dunking boy underwater at hotel pool,” WINK News, December 22, 2025.
