Was actor and musician Corey Feldman charged with pot possession for speaking out against sexual abuse? He seems to think so.
Over the weekend, police pulled Feldman over as his tour bus made its way through Louisiana. After finding cannabis on the bus, police charged Feldman with misdemeanor pot possession and cited him for driving with a suspended license.
But it’s the timing of the incident, not the incident itself, which prompted a Sunday Twitter blast from Feldman.
According to the musician, the police encounter was a “shake up” targeting him for comments he made in the wake of Hollywood’s Harvey Weinstein scandal.
Corey Feldman Charged With Pot Possession
Police in Mangham, Louisiana said they pulled Corey Feldman’s tour bus over for speeding on Saturday. Feldman was on tour with his band, Corey Feldman & The Angels.
After discovering Feldman was driving with a suspended license, police detained him at the station.
While there, one officer claimed he smelled marijuana. A subsequent search of the tour bus found some cannabis.
The police then charged Feldman with misdemeanor cannabis possession, even though he did not have any weed on his person.
For first-time offenders, misdemeanor pot possession in Louisiana carries a penalty of a $300 fine and/or up to 15 days in jail.
Police say they released Feldman after he paid the fine. He did not spend any time in jail and did not face arrest.
Then, in a series of tweets issued on Sunday, Feldman explained that he only faced a weed charge because the tour bus was his personal vehicle.
What police found, Feldman explained on Twitter, was the legal, medical cannabis belonging to a member of his crew.
Feldman reported that no one on the bus had “illegal or street drugs,” and that all cannabis was legal medicine his crew had obtained via California prescription. The problem, he continued, was that the weed wasn’t in its medical packaging.
One tweet even described how the officers asked Feldman “4 pics & autographs” and even called the local paper to do interviews.
Corey Feldman Charged With Pot Possession: Ironic Timing or Just Coincidence?
Feldman’s encounter with Louisiana police is raising some eyebrows. It comes on the heels of Feldman’s speaking out against sexual abuse in Hollywood.
This month, major news broke about movie-mogul Harvey Weinstein’s history of raping and sexually abusing Hollywood actresses.
Dozens and dozens of women have come forward with horrific tales of the abuse they suffered at the hands of Weinstein.
With many in Hollywood coming forward to speak out about Weinstein and about Hollywood sexism and abuse in general, Corey Feldman seized the moment to raise the issue of pedophilia.
Feldman recently spoke out about the alleged sexual abuse he experienced as a child actor. He says his abuse is part of a larger problem of pedophilia in Hollywood.
But Feldman, now 46, has been outspoken about child sex abuse in the entertainment industry for years.
Feldman’s outspokenness on the topic hasn’t come without costs. He says his advocacy has damaged his career and that he has been “mocked and shamed.”
Nevertheless, Feldman’s October 20 tweets made impassioned pleas for others who witnessed or experienced child abuse to come forward. “I would love to see others come forward as there are many other witnesses to the crimes I have addressed,” Feldman tweeted.
FORWARD AS THERE R MANY OTHER WITNESSES 2 THE CRIMES I HAVE ADDRESSED. STILL NOT 1 OF MY PEERS HAS OFFERED UP ANYTHING IN A DECADE!
— Corey Feldman (@Corey_Feldman) October 20, 2017
No doubt, this history of retaliation has to do with the comments Feldman made drawing attention to the curious timing of his marijuana bust.
I DO FIND THE TIMING OF ALL THIS IRONIC! BUT HAVE NO FEAR, WE R HEADED 2 HOUSTON, & WE WILL PERFORM THE BENEFIT CONCERT 2NITE 2 HELP RAISE $
— Corey Feldman (@Corey_Feldman) October 22, 2017