Substitute Teacher Arrested for Carrying Gun in Hialeah School: How Was the Weapon Discovered?

A 27-year-old substitute teacher was taken into custody this week after a loaded gun was found inside her backpack at Westland Senior High School in Hialeah, according to local media reports.

The teacher, identified as Chenelle Antonette Doctor and a resident of Hollywood, Florida, was working as a substitute at the school located at 4000 W. 18th Ave on the day of the incident.

Discovery of the Firearm

How was the weapon uncovered? It all began when a fellow teacher spotted an unattended backpack in the school auditorium. In an attempt to find identification for the bag's owner, the teacher decided to check its contents.

Instead of finding ID documents, the teacher discovered a 9mm Walther pistol housed in a black holster.

The teacher promptly brought the backpack to the principal's office, who then alerted the school's resource officer.

Upon inspection, the officers confirmed that the firearm was loaded with a bullet in the chamber, had a magazine with seven live rounds, and also contained an additional empty magazine.

Inside the wallet found within the same backpack, a passport ID connected the bag to Doctor.

The Teacher's Explanation

Once located on campus, Doctor was apprehended by the school resource officer.

According to the arrest report from the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department, as reported by Local 10, the accused “spontaneously told the arresting officer that she had forgotten to remove her gun from her backpack that morning.”

Doctor was working that day as an employee of Kelly Services, the contractor that provides substitute teachers to Miami-Dade County schools.

Kelly Education, a division of Kelly Services, requires a high school diploma, being over 19 years old for high schools, and passing a criminal background check, but it does not mandate a college degree or previous teaching experience.

Charges and Court Appearance

Doctor is facing a charge of possessing a firearm on school property, a third-degree felony under Florida Statute 790.115.

This law explicitly prohibits firearms on primary and secondary school premises, administrative buildings, and school sports events, even for those with a carry license.

It is important to note that while Florida allows concealed carry without a permit as of July 1, 2023, the law still forbids firearms on school grounds.

Doctor appeared before a judge on Wednesday, who assigned her pre-trial supervision with an alternative bond set at $2,500 and ordered her to stay away from the school.

As of Thursday morning, she remained in custody at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center (TGK).

School Safety Concerns in Miami-Dade

The episode reignites concerns over campus safety in the county, a particularly sensitive issue in South Florida.

In August, a threat posted on Instagram against the Hialeah campus of Miami-Dade College resulted in the arrest of a student, with bail set at $5,000.

Following the Parkland tragedy in 2018, Florida tightened its school safety framework and added school resource officers to campuses. A new law passed in 2026 expanded the armed guardian program to public higher education institutions.

Founded in 2007 to alleviate overcrowding at other Hialeah high schools, Westland Senior High School serves approximately 1,191 students from grades 9 to 12, highlighting the seriousness of a loaded weapon being left unattended in its auditorium.