Middle school security guard arrested on child abuse charges, Duval County Public Schools says; charges later dropped

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — UPDATE, 4/8/2020: The charges against Gregory Holmes were dropped, court records show.

Original story from 2/14/2020 below:

Highlands Middle School security guard was arrested by Duval County School Police Thursday following an incident involving one of the students, according to Duval County Public Schools.

Gregory Holmes was taken into custody Thursday on child abuse charges from an incident that occurred Tuesday.

Following the incident, Holmes left the school. According to a release put out by the school district, the district requested that Holmes return to the district’s administrative offices Thursday to receive notification of his status as an employee. When Holmes arrived to the administrative building, Duval County School Police took him into custody without incident.

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According to DCPS, Mr. Holmes began his service to the district on April 4, 2019. On Aug. 10, 2019, Mr. Holmes resigned for personal reasons, and he was then re-hired on Oct. 7, 2019.

Action News Jax has requested a report and are waiting to hear back from the district.

Communication to the parents:

Hello Highlands Middle School Families, this is Principal Wilcox calling.

I hope you know that we have the highest expectations for all of the staff of our school, and when a member of our staff falls well short of those expectations, I want to make sure that you are aware.

Today, one of our security guards, Mr. Gregory Holmes, was taken into custody by our school police department for child abuse charges stemming from an incident involving one of our students.

I am extremely disappointed to share this news with you, but I hope it demonstrates the extent we will go to protect our children. Please know that we will continue to work diligently to protect the welfare of our students and take decisive action anytime an incident like this happen in our district.

Thank you for your attention to this message and as always if you have any questions or feedback regarding your child’s experience at Highlands Middle School, do not hesitate to reach out to me through the school. Thanks again and goodbye.