A teacher at the Big Blue Marble Day Care in Grovetown has been arrested following reports of child abuse.
Grovetown police responded to a call from a distressed parent on Tuesday regarding an incident that occurred the previous day involving their 3-year-old child. According to the parent’s account, upon arriving to pick up their child on Monday, they found the toddler visibly upset and claiming to have been injured by a teacher.
The parent then spoke with the daycare director, who disclosed an “incident” involving the child and the teacher, identified as 33-year-old Tieasha Stokes.
Reviewing surveillance footage provided by the daycare, officers observed Stokes forcibly picking up the child by the armpit area and forcefully seating her into a chair, according to Grovetown Police Chief Jamey Kitchens. The child sustained minor abrasions as a result of the incident. Following an investigation, the daycare director, Holly Mullins, confirmed that Stokes had been terminated on the same day.
On Thursday, officers met with Mullins, who permitted them to review the surveillance footage, which corroborated the parent’s report. Subsequently, Stokes was charged with child cruelty in the second degree. She was arrested at her residence in Martinez and transported to the Columbia County Detention Center on Friday.
