POLK COUNTY, Fla. — A substitute teacher was taken into custody at approximately after displaying signs of impairment at the school.
A Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputy assigned to the school as a resource officer encountered Dyal in the parking lot at Lake Alfred Polytech. The deputy was attempting to back out of a parking space when the interaction began.
During the investigation, the deputy administered a field sobriety test. Dyal displayed multiple signs of impairment and had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath.
Following the test, he was transported to the Sheriff’s Processing Center for charging. Dyal consented to a blood draw while in custody.
Sheriff Grady Judd criticized the substitute teacher’s actions during the school day. “This substitute teacher was drunker than Cooter Brown at school while he was supposed to be teaching our children. We gave him an education when we took him to jail,” Judd said.
The district released a statement praising the faculty members who identified the situation before Dyal reached students.
“We commend our school staff for noticing that something was off and not allowing this individual to proceed to the classroom yesterday,” the school district stated. “What a terrible decision and unacceptable behavior from someone working on a campus. This person will no longer have any involvement with PCPS.”
The blood sample will be processed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
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