On the evening of Monday, December 23, Charlotte, North Carolina rapper and songwriter DaBaby, whose legal name is Jonathan Kirk, performed a concert for his fans at Bojangles Coliseum, but not before visiting with 200 needy children in the area earlier in the day and donating toys for Christmas.
Kirk’s mother, who helped him arrange the occasion, told WBTV that it tugs at her heart to see her son give back.
But the day’s course took a different turn when the 28-year-old rapper was arrested for cannabis possession after his concert at the Coliseum later that evening.
Officers who were working security outside the venue say that they smelled the scent of cannabis emanating from a white Dodge Charger, with Kirk inside, that arrived at the venue before the show at approximately 8:50 pm.
Officers searched the vehicle with flashlights when Kirk was not present, and said that they could see cannabis in plain view inside.
According to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department press release, based on probable cause of cannabis being in plain view, they decided to detain Kirk after he was finished with his performance.
Officers stated that they detained Kirk in handcuffs and searched his vehicle after he walked away and refused to engage with them.
When officers located cannabis inside the vehicle, they transported Kirk to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Department before deciding to issue him two North Carolina Uniform Citations for misdemeanor possession of marijuana and resist, obstruct, and delay.
But Kirk told reporters after being released that he did not resist arrest and that he has video evidence to prove it.
“So what we got is high-quality audio and video of me doing everything but resisting arrest before they just brought me down here,” Kirk told reporters as he thanked his production team. “And we will be airing it out, y’all will see how dirty the CMPD just did me.”
Kirk told WCNBC that he feels targeted every time he comes to the city and that officers unlawfully searched his vehicle and arrested him.
Shivering from the cold, Kirk wished the reporters Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays before retreating to a waiting truck.
Kirk Tweeted on Tuesday that he is a positive example for the city of Charlotte, its streets, and the kids.
Someone died last night while the police department wasting resources and officers to harass me in attempt to make a bad example out of me. When in reality, i’m the most positive example the city of Charlotte got. Especially for anybody in the streets of Charlotte and the KIDS.
— DaBaby (@DaBabyDaBaby) December 24, 2019
According to the police press release, the CMPD has launched an internal investigation of the incident to determine whether officers followed department policies and directives.
