School district: Volusia County teacher arrested, accused of child abuse

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — A Volusia County middle school teacher has been arrested on child abuse charges, the school district said.

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Volusia County Schools said Kelly Falcon, an Exceptional Student Education teacher at River Springs Middle School, was taken into custody Monday.

Orange City police were called to the school about a battery.

Read: Ex-Volusia County teacher accused of sexual relationship with student; 40 women contact police

According to an arrest report, surveillance video showed Kelly forcibly grabbing an 11-year-old non-verbal autistic student by the arm and slapping him in the face.

The report said a witness believed Kelly was trying to keep the student from playing in the dirt.

Read: OCPS to pay $375K to settle lawsuit alleging district failed to protect student from sexual assualt

In a statement, the school district said it values the safety of its students and staff and “will not tolerate this type of behavior.”

Read: Volusia County Schools to hire international teachers with $2 million agreement, combat shortage

The news release said that Falcon was on probation but is no longer employed by the district.

Volusia County Schools said it would continue to work with law enforcement on the investigation.

Video: Former student starts Facebook support group after ex-Volusia County teacher arrested (WFTV)

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