An 80-year-old worker at Deltona Lakes Elementary School has been arrested after investigators accused her of striking a 9-year-old student in the back of the head during a cafeteria incident.
Maria Luz Graham, who worked with the school’s extended-care program, was arrested Sept. 21 and charged with felony child abuse without great bodily harm, according to investigators and court records.
The incident happened Sept. 17 while students were getting food in the school cafeteria. The child later told her mother that Graham had accused her of behaving disrespectfully and hitting other students. The girl denied hitting anyone.
According to the investigation, the student took her food tray toward her seat after the exchange. Graham followed her, and surveillance video reviewed by school officials and deputies showed Graham striking the back of the child’s head with an open hand.
The impact caused the child’s head to move forward, investigators said. The girl also reported experiencing pain after the incident.
School officials reviewed the cafeteria footage the following day. Principal Chad Miller told investigators that the video did not show the child punching another student. Instead, he described the child’s earlier behavior as horseplay and confirmed that physical contact occurred between Graham and the student.
The child’s mother reported the incident to authorities and told deputies she wanted to pursue criminal charges. Investigators later spoke with the child, who provided an account consistent with what she had previously told her mother.
Graham gave investigators a different account of what happened. During an interview on Sept. 21, she said the student had been attempting to move ahead in the cafeteria line and was pushing other children. Graham said she warned the girl that she could be sent to the back of the line.
Graham also recalled following the student toward her seat. She told investigators that she raised her hand during the interaction and said she may have touched the child’s head lightly, but she did not remember striking her.
The surveillance footage became a key part of the investigation as deputies reviewed what happened in the cafeteria. Investigators said the video supported the allegation that Graham struck the student.
The Volusia County school district confirmed that Graham is no longer employed by the district. Her resignation took effect shortly after the Sept. 17 incident.
Graham was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail on Sept. 21 and was released on her own recognizance the following day, according to the latest available jail information cited in reports. She is scheduled to appear for an arraignment on Oct. 15.
The case remains pending, and the child abuse allegation has not been decided in court. The charge against Graham is an accusation, and she is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
