YouTuber and social media influencer Jack Doherty was arrested on drug possession and other charges in Miami Beach after he was found disrupting traffic to allegedly film social media content, police said.
Miami Beach police announced that a 22-year-old man was taken into custody early Saturday morning on multiple charges, including possession of amphetamine and marijuana, and nonviolently resisting an officer.
“The Miami Beach Police Department remains steadfast in its commitment to maintaining public safety and order throughout the city—regardless of celebrity status,” the agency said. “The Department will continue to take aggressive enforcement action against behavior that puts residents, visitors or officers at risk and will hold all individuals accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
According to his biography on Delka TalentsHis talent agency, Doherty, has over 3.2 million YouTube subscribers and over 500 million views on YouTube. Doherty is best known for filming daredevil's stunts and pranks. most viewed video as of March 2018, he has over 18 million views, his bio says.
CBS News Miami has reached out to Doherty's representatives for comment on his arrest.
Influencer blocks traffic for “content”
Around 3:12 a.m. Saturday, Miami Beach police officers were conducting a high-visibility operation along the 700 block of Washington Avenue in the city's entertainment district when a group of individuals entered the roadway from the eastbound sidewalk into the northbound lanes. A man in the group, later identified as Doherty, became separated from them and attempted to engage officers to “create video content by positioning himself in the middle of the roadway with a passing vehicle and creating a significant safety hazard,” according to arrest documents obtained by CBS News Miami.
Miami Beach police officers began issuing several commands, ordering Doherty to leave the roadway, but he refused. Even after his group called on him to comply, he continued to refuse to obey the officers' commands.
The officers continued, warning Doherty that failure to comply would result in his arrest. However, the influencer continued to refuse commands and told them, “As soon as I'm done with this bet,” arrest documents state. At that point, Miami Beach police safely detained Doherty in the middle of the road due to his “willful refusal to obey lawful orders and continued obstruction of traffic.”
According to arrest documents, during a search of Doherty, officers found “one half of an orange, oval-shaped pill with three numbers imprinted on it consistent with a Schedule II amphetamine, as well as a black plastic container containing three hand-rolled suspected cannabis cigarettes, weighing approximately 4.0 grams in total.”
After a records check that revealed no active warrants, officers took Doherty to the Miami Beach Police Department booking facility and contacted an after-hours attorney for instructions on filing charges.
