Telegraph Staff Writer
STARKE— A 35-year-old Starke woman was sentenced to one year, six months’ probation after pleading to interfering with a school function and trespassing.
Tiffany Lanae Dobbs was initially charged with battery on a person aged 65 or older and burglary with assault. However, the State dropped the battery charge, and Dobbs pleaded to the lesser trespassing charge instead of burglary.
According to a sworn complaint, on October 21, 2022, Dobbs telephoned the father of their daughter and told him she could not pick up the child from school due to an emergency.
The father responded by asking his parents to pick up the student since they were in Starke, and he was not.
“While (the grandparents) were at the school,” wrote Deputy T. Lovell in the complaint, “Tiffany shows up and began demanding (the student). (The girl) then began screaming that she did not want to go with Tiffany.”
The grandfather told Lovett that Dobbs began pulling on his vehicle door handles to gain access to the child, and the mother struck him on the left side of his face through an open window, knocking his glasses off.
“I observed a cut on the left side of (the victim’s) face as well as on the left side of his nose,” wrote Lovett. “He then stated that he got out of the vehicle, and Tiffany began hitting him again, at which time he struck her, knocking her to the ground. Tiffany then got back up and started hitting him again, at which time he then struck her again, knocking her to the ground. I did not observe any injuries to Tiffany.”
Lovett added that the school’s principal, Cassandra Melvin, obtained permission from the student’s father to talk to the child about the incident.
“Cassandra stated that (the child) told her that her mother showed up and hit her ‘Pepaw’” wrote Lovett. “(The child) showed Melvin where Tiffany hit (the 71-year-old). Melvin asked (the child) if the grandfather hit or shoved Tiffany, to which she answered that he attempted to get Tiffany off him.
The child’s grandmother said she was having heart complications due to the incident. Bradford Emergency Medical Services transported her to St. Vincent’s in Middelburg.
Dobbs complained of neck pain due to being knocked to the ground. She added that she had neck injuries before the incident at the school.
Lovett wrote that he reported the incident to DCF and that the school’s principal wanted Dobbs trespassed from the campus except for dropping off or picking up the student from school.
