HIALEAH, FLA. (WSVN) - A substitute teacher is getting a lesson in the law after, police said, she brought a loaded gun to a school in Hialeah, according to police.
According to investigators, 27-year-old Chenelle Antonette Doctor has been charged with a felony after she brought the firearm to Westland Senior High School on Tuesday.
“You were arrested for possession of a firearm on school property,” said Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Mindy S. Glazer.
A teacher at the school found an unattended bag sitting inside the auditorium which contained a Walther PPS 9mm handgun “in a black holster with a chambered round and a magazine inserted with 7 live rounds,” according to the arrest report.
The report goes on to say there was “another magazine but it was empty.”
Personal items inside the bag, including an ID, led detectives to Doctor.
When questioned by authorities, Doctor “spontaneously uttered that she forgot to take the firearm out of her bookbag.”
During her bond court appearance, Doctor reiterated to the judge that she had mistakenly left the weapon in her bag.
Speaking with 7News in Spanish, parent Yunier Alvarez said he wasn’t aware of the arrest but was highly alarmed to learned that a loaded gun was left in an area where any student could have found it.
A student who did not wish to identify herself also said she had not heard about the incident and shared similar concerns.
“That’s insane. I had no idea that happened; that’s, like, really worrying ’cause I feel like they’re not doing proper background checks,” she said.
Officials said Doctor was hired through Kelly Services, an independent company that provides substitute teachers for the district.
The company released a statement explaining that Doctor passed a rigorous screening procedure. The statement goes on to say, “This individual’s actions were unacceptable and constitute a clear violation of our code of conduct.”
Doctor has since been fired.
The judge also ordered her to stay away from the school. Doctor bonded out of jail early Thursday morning.
7News reached out to Miami-Dade County Public Schools for comment but were referred to Kelly Services.
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