Osceola school board member charged with battery, serving alcohol to a teenager

Osceola County school board member Julius Melendez was charged with battery and selling or giving alcohol to someone underage, court records show.

Osceola County Sheriff’s Office charged Melendez with the misdemeanors Friday, after an investigation which began when an 18-year-old female notified them he gave her alcohol, court records show.

Melendez’s arraignment is set for 8:30 a.m. Nov. 6, court records show.

The 18-year-old worked at Susana’s Café in Kissimmee alongside Melendez who was a manager. He helped open the café, court records show.

The teenager told Osceola County Sheriff’s Office that Melendez offered her alcoholic drinks at the café on June 29 and offered his home for her to stay in to make it easier to get to work at the café due to its proximity, court records show.

After the teenager accepted his offer she and Melendez drove to his home where, she told the Sheriff’s Office, once inside Melendez asked if he could kiss her and she told him no. Later in the night, he suddenly kissed her and the teen pushed him away, according to court records.

She told the Sheriff’s Office that Melendez apologized and left the room and did not come back, court records show.

The owners of Susana’s Café, Jose and Susana Martinez, told the Sheriff’s Office that Jose received a call from Melendez saying he didn’t think anything was wrong and “didn’t do anything illegal,” court records show.

Melendez no longer works at Susana’s Café, the Orlando Sentinel confirmed.

In a statement Melendez’s lawyer, Migdalia Perez, said the allegations are false.

“Mr. Melendez has been falsely accused by a woman, not a minor,” Perez said. “These allegations are patently false and damaging to his long reputation as a leader in this community. We look forward to challenging these falsehoods through the legal process and are confident the truth will prevail.”