Police arrest dad for piercing son’s ear in viral TikTok video

A viral TikTok captured the moment an Arkansas father got arrested at his home for piercing his son’s ear and violating ‘body art law.’

It all started when a Springdale High School resource officer reported a student telling classmates his drunk dad “put him in a chokehold and shoved the piercing in his ear,” police said in a statement. The officer then contacted the Tontitown Police Department in regards to making a welfare check.

Officers visited the family home, and while Jeremy Sherland admitted to piercing his son’s left ear, he refused to let them speak to the boy to answer questions. This led the police to return with an arrest warrant.

In a viral TikTok posted by Jeremy’s son, four cops were seen inside the Sherland family’s home, pinning the father against the wall and putting handcuffs on him. “Why are you doing this?” the boy asked, while Jeremy’s wife demanded police give an explanation for the sudden arrest.

Dad arrested for piercing son’s ear

An officer explained that he’s being arrested for performing “body art without a license,” to which the baffled father let out an exaggerated laugh.

Jeremy appeared to momentarily try to resist, before police managed to escort him out of the door, with his wife and son following. “Piercing is done here without a license,” the woman shouted.

She continued: “It takes three cops, four cops, coming into my house with no permission. No permission and busted in my front door. This is the boy right here who got a pierced ear by his dad. These cops busted in my front door.”

“I wanted my ears pierced,” the boy is heard yelling at officers, as they placed his dad in the patrol car.

Arkansas law states it is forbidden to “perform body art on a person under 16 years of age, regardless of parental consent”, while it is also illegal “to perform body art in any unlicensed facility”. Violation of that law is a Class D felony.

Jeremy was also charged with endangering the welfare of a minor, refusing to submit to arrest, and obstructing governmental operations. According to online records, he was released on a $1,500 bond after spending two nights in the Washington County jail.