“Home Improvement” star Jonathan Taylor Thomas was arrested after he allegedly kicked a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy in the stomach during a traffic stop in Malibu, according to law enforcement.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the former child star was taken into custody on suspicion of obstruction and public intoxication, TMZ reported.
According to authorities, Thomas was not behind the wheel at the time. Instead, he was a passenger in a car that deputies pulled over on the morning of Sept. 21 in Malibu, where the alleged incident unfolded.
TMZ shared the news on X on Sept. 24, writing that Thomas allegedly kicked a sheriff’s deputy in the stomach before he was arrested.
Law enforcement said the vehicle Thomas was riding in was stopped in an intersection and was blocking traffic, prompting deputies to intervene.
What happened next, according to police, escalated the situation significantly.
Authorities alleged that Thomas was instructed to stay inside the car but failed to comply with that order. As a deputy attempted to place him under arrest, Thomas reportedly kicked the officer in the stomach, TMZ reported.
Police then arrested Thomas for obstructing and resisting an officer.
The actor was processed at the jail at the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station on Monday. He remained in custody overnight before being released on Tuesday.
The arrest marks a stunning turn for the actor, who rose to fame as a child star on “Home Improvement.” The allegations laid out by the Sheriff’s Department paint a picture of a routine traffic stop that quickly spiraled once deputies encountered the famous passenger.
According to the department, the two suspected offenses behind the arrest were obstruction and public intoxication. Police said the charges he was ultimately arrested for were obstructing and resisting an officer, stemming from his alleged refusal to remain in the vehicle and the reported kick to the deputy’s stomach.
The incident began, police said, simply because the car was stopped in the middle of an intersection and blocking the flow of traffic in Malibu. That situation brought deputies to the scene, setting in motion the chain of events that ended with Thomas in handcuffs.
Deputies said they gave Thomas a clear instruction to remain inside the vehicle. According to law enforcement, he did not follow that directive. When a deputy moved to arrest him, the officer was allegedly struck in the stomach by a kick from Thomas.
Following the arrest, Thomas was booked at the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station’s jail on Monday. He was released from police custody the following day, Tuesday.
Thomas has not publicly addressed the arrest. The actor does not maintain a social media account.
The allegations against the “Home Improvement” star were first reported by TMZ, which cited the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in its account of the Malibu traffic stop and the events that followed.
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