Jack Doherty: Popular YouTuber faces seven years in prison after arrested in Florida on drug possession charges
YouTuber Jack Doherty was arrested on drug possession and other charges in the Miami area last week, police said.
The influencer was filming video content while attempting to engage with police officers in the middle of the road, blocking traffic in the process, according to arrest documents published by US media. He was then apprehended, before a police search found "half of an orange oval-shaped pill with 3 imprinted on it, consistent with a Schedule II amphetamine", and three "suspected cannabis cigarettes".
The 22-year-old is known for filming provocative videos involving pranks, with titles like "I got kicked off a cruise" and "I crashed into a cop car". He is also known for videos in which he provokes strangers on the street, before hiding behind his bodyguard.
He has more than 15 million subscribers on YouTube, over 10 million followers on TikTok and more than 2.8 million followers on Instagram. While his bond was listed at $3,500 (£2,660), the influencer could be facing three serious charges after his run-in with the cops, which were listed as: Controlled substance, possession of 20 grams or less of marijuana, and resisting an officer without violence to his or her person, per NBC6.
The first charge is a third-degree felony, with the latter two standing as first-degree misdemeanours. Florida law states that third-degree felonies are punishable by 'a term of imprisonment not exceeding five years', while a first-degree demeanour can land you up to a year behind bars.
If the 22-year-old is found guilty and gets the maximum sentence for each count, he could be facing seven years in prison. However, this is unlikely, as a report from Measures for Justice revealed that an average prison sentence of 24 months was handed to those convicted of nonviolent felonies without any convictions in the state in the preceding three years.
Even then, the report pointed out that under 8.5 percent of the total group faced jail time at all, despite a conviction rate of over 58 percent. Following the legal drama, Doherty has continued to film as normal, even speaking to TMZ about the situation and describing his time as the 'worst day of his life'.
He claimed he spent five hours in a small cell before getting a mugshot and fingerprints. He then spent '10 hours' in a holding room' where he made 'some calls', spending more time in another cell later on before guards told him he could leave, as the streamer said he ‘plans to be good and stay outta jail from here on out’. Doherty described the arrest as 'stupid'.