Chronically Online in Furtherance of a Crime
Let us count the ways that social media can get you into trouble. Content creators and algorithm designers have learned to target everyone’s worst nature, to make you feel angry, insecure, lonely, paranoid, and utterly convinced of your poorly thought-out ideas. Two friends whose ostensibly harmless clicks led them down rabbit holes of differing ideologies can quickly turn into enemies. The Internet can zap your attention span until you can do nothing but scroll through increasingly sensationalized short-form videos; even a text from your crush, written from the heart with no AI augmentation, cannot distract you from your doomscrolling. Being gullible and socially inept is perfectly legal, but the attention economy of the Internet can also lead you to break the law. It can make you think that everyone else has more money than you do and that they can afford the flashy possessions they display before the camera, leading to temptation to steal and defraud. It can send you into a rage, so that you are one minor annoyance away from punching someone or intentionally crashing your car. Your chatbot companion can convince you that the suffering of the targets of your violence and fraud matters little in comparison to the secret world that you and your chatbot friend share. And then there is the pressure to show off and film yourself showing off. Remember the South Florida man who got arrested after he filmed himself rapping in front of his bathroom mirror and posted the video online, and the police saw drugs on the shelf behind him in the video, and this was sufficient evidence for a search warrant? It would not be the last time that Internet showoffs got criminal charges when their online antics drew attention to their alleged illegal activities. Here, our Miami drug crimes defense lawyer explains how a social media personality attracted the attention of police while filming a video, leading to his arrest on suspicion of drug crimes.
YouTuber Arrested for Drug Possession After His Efforts to Stage a Video Draw the Attention of Police
Jack Doherty is a YouTube content creator whose videos of himself performing stunts have attracted many thousands of views. In November 2025, he filmed himself standing in the middle of a busy road in Miami-Dade County. Eventually, police showed up to investigate. An officer told Doherty to get out of the road, but Doherty said that he would not move until he was finished with a bet. News sources did not elaborate on what the bet entailed.
Police arrested Doherty for resisting an officer, and presumably the state will claim that Doherty’s conduct gave the police probable cause to search the pockets of his clothing. They found three hand-rolled cigarettes which would test positive for cannabis and an orange pill that turned out to be amphetamine. Amphetamine pills like the one in Doherty’s possession are legal for doctors to prescribe to treat conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Doherty, 22, was taken to jail and released ten hours later. Unless he violates the conditions of his release, he will remain free until his trial. He is facing charges for resisting an officer and for possession of controlled substances.
What’s Next After a YouTube Stunt Goes Wrong?
The maximum sentence that Doherty could face for his charges is seven years in prison, but that will only happen if many dominos fall. It can only happen if Doherty pleads not guilty, his case goes to trial, the jury votes to convict him of all his charges, and the court hands down the maximum sentence for all of them.
This is only one of many possible outcomes. The court may decide that the crimes are too minor to prosecute, and it may dismiss them. Since Doherty is a young person with no prior criminal record, the court may admit him to a pretrial diversion program through one of Florida’s many drug courts or other problem-solving courts. Despite that, in a video, Doherty said that he did not plan to seek substance abuse treatment, pretrial diversion programs usually require it. Participants who successfully complete pretrial diversion programs get their charges dropped. Another possible outcome of the case is that he might accept a plea deal. Because of plea deals, more than 90 percent of defendants in criminal cases plead guilty.
Contact Our Criminal Defense Attorneys
A South Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges for drug possession. Contact Ratzan & Faccidomo in Miami, Florida for a confidential consultation about your case.
Sources:
complex.com/pop-culture/a/treyalston/jack-doherty-told-police-stop-recording-done-with-this-bet
justjared.com/2025/11/18/youtuber-jack-doherty-says-jail-was-boring-while-detailing-his-miami-arrest/
