Child stars arrested or in trouble with the law

By Wonderwall.com Editors 8:27am PDT, Apr 11, 2016

It's a tragic Hollywood cliche: adorable child star takes a wrong turn and ends up on a dark path to adulthood. Wonderwall.com is rounding up the child actors who've found themselves in trouble with the law later in life. First up: Haley Joel Osment, who turned 28 on April 10, 2016. The actor who charmed audiences in 1999's "The Sixth Sense" found himself charged with three misdemeanors back in 2006 after police nabbed him for driving under the influence. Then only 18, Haley's blood-alcohol level was twice the legal limit, despite the fact that he wasn't even old enough to drink. He was also charged with marijuana possession. He was fined, put on probation and sentenced to 60 hours of rehab but — unlike so many others — has stayed out of trouble ever since. Keep reading to see more young stars who've found themselves in legal trouble…

Shia LaBeouf rose to fame on "Even Stevens" back in 2000 when he was just 14. Unfortunately for Shia, while his career flourished, so did his troubles with the law. At age 19 in 2005, he was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon after he showed up on his neighbor's doorstep in Los Angeles with a kitchen knife. In 2007, he was arrested for misdemeanor criminal trespassing after he refused to leave a Walgreens in Chicago. Shia was again arrested in Los Angeles in 2008 and charged with misdemeanor drunk driving for refusing to take a Breathalyzer. He went three years without getting into trouble — then he was handcuffed after a bar fight in Sherman Oaks, California, in 2011. Although he wasn't ultimately arrested in that incident, he was taken into custody in New York City three years later in 2014 when he allegedly spat and cursed at police officers. Most recently, Shia was arrested for public intoxication in October 2015.

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As a child star on "Nickelodeon" in the '90s, Amanda Bynes seemed to seamlessly transition to a successful career as an adult actress — until 2012. That year, she was charged with driving under the influence after she side-swiped a sheriff's patrol car in West Hollywood, California. Later that year, she was cited for driving with a suspended license and was put on probation. The legal drama didn't end there: In 2013, she was arrested for criminal possession of marijuana, attempted tampering with evidence, and reckless endangerment after she was allegedly seen throwing a bong from the window of her 36th-floor apartment in New York City (she claimed it was a vase). But Amanda was arrested and underwent a psychiatric evaluation — the first of many (the case was eventually dismissed after she underwent counseling). Later that same year, Amanda was placed on an involuntary psychiatric hold after she allegedly started a fire in a stranger's driveway in Thousand Oaks, California. Her last arrest came a year later, when she was taken into custody for her second DUI. After lengthy treatment for mental health issues, Amanda — who resurfaced looking healthy and happy in 2015 — is now reportedly doing much better.

He became America's darling in 1990 when he starred as Kevin McCallister in "Home Alone," but Macaulay Culkin didn't stay on the straight and narrow once he grew up. While visiting Oklohoma City at age 24, he was charged with possession of marijuana as well as medication without a prescription after officers pulled over his friend, who was speeding, and discovered passenger Macaulay with 17.3 grams of weed, eight Xanax pills and 16 doses of clonazepam, a sedative used to treat anxiety and seizures, CNN reported after the 2004 incident.

As seen here at the premiere of "Flight of the Navigator," Joey Cramer was an adorable child star in 1986. But fast forward 30 years, and the former Disney star was arrested and charged with holding up a bank in British Columbia, Canada on April 28, 2016. At the age of 42, Joey allegedly held up the Scotiabank while wearing a wig. He was charged with robbery, disguise with the intent to commit an indictable offense, failing to stop for a peace officer and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.

Former Disney actor Orlando Brown, who starred on "That's So Raven," had four bench warrants out for his arrest after a DUI back in 2011. This followed a 2007 arrest for drug possession. Unfortunately for Orlando, that wasn't the end of his legal woes: In February 2016, the actor was parked in a police station lot, of all places, when he allegedly hit his girlfriend. Cops were notified to check on the arguing couple, and when Orlando was detained, law enforcement reportedly found him in possession of meth.

Aaron Carter, the little brother of Backstreet Boys singer Nick Carter, also found fame in the pop-music world at a young age. Then in 2008 at age 20, Aaron was busted in Texas for having two ounces of marijuana in his possession. Aaron also got into financial trouble in 2009 while he was doing a stint on "Dancing With the Stars" when he found out he owed millions of dollars in unpaid taxes. The pop singer filed for bankruptcy in 2013.

"Diff'rent Strokes" star Dana Plato had a hard life after finding fame at a young age. The actress, who long struggled with addiction issues, got into serious trouble with the cops in 1991 when she attempted to rob a video store at gunpoint. It wouldn't be her only run-in with police: In 1992, she was arrested for forging a Valium prescription. Seven years later, Dana tragically died at age 34 after overdosing on a painkiller and Valium. The Oklahoma City medical examiner later determined that her death was a suicide.

Jaimee Foxworth starred on "Family Matters" as a kid but began abusing drugs and alcohol in her teens. She went down a dark path when she got into the adult film industry at age 19 to support her drug habit. Fortunately, she was able to turn her life around: After doing a stint on "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew," a pregnancy later helped Jaimee tackle her problems with substance abuse. In 2009, she encountered new issues: A judge granted her a temporary restraining order against her longtime boyfriend after he allegedly physically and verbally abused her. The actress claimed in court documents that Michael Shaw "grabbed her arm and dragged her along the floor through broken glass," TMZ reported, and on another occasion she said he tried to push her out of a car while she was feeding their infant son. In 2014, she revealed on "Oprah: Where Are They Now?" that she and her son's dad later reconciled.

When a late-night text came through on former "My Wife and Kids" child star Jennifer Freeman's phone on Aug. 1, 2010, her then-husband, NBA player Earl Watson, became suspicious and checked it. The actress had a pretty extreme reaction: According to divorce documents he filed less than two weeks later, Jennifer was so mad he'd looked at her device that she hit him in the face twice, bit him on the wrist and chest and attacked him with an iron. Though they later (briefly) reconciled, his account of the allegedly violent encounter made headlines that will never go away. As of 2015, the two were involved in a bitter custody battle over their 5-year-old daughter.

Another one of the "Diff'rent Strokes" child actors, Todd Bridges, has also been in trouble with the law. The actor was addicted to crack cocaine for years and in 1988 was arrested then tried for the attempted murder of a Los Angeles drug dealer. Though he was acquitted, he would later get into another scuffle that almost landed him in jail once again: Todd was attacked by a tenant to whom he was renting a room in 1993 during a rent dispute and stabbed the man in the chest with a kitchen knife after the man allegedly attacked him with a sword. The charges were eventually dropped after it was determined that Todd acted in self defense.

Marcus T. Paulk played young Myles on the popular show "Moesha" in the '90s. The former child star was arrested following a domestic violence incident in 2013 when his girlfriend, Andi Roxx, accused him of punching and kicking her in the chin and stomach. According to TMZ, he avoided jail time by taking a plea deal. Then in 2015, he was arrested on DUI and drug possession charges while partying before the Super Bowl in Arizona.

Tatum O'Neal may have won an Oscar as a child actress — she was just 10 when she took home an Academy Award for her performance in 1973's "Paper Moon" — but it didn't help her escape the dangerous path many follow after finding fame at a young age. The actress, who's long struggled with addiction issues, was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance after New York City cops busted her buying crack in 2008. Later that year, she pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct related to the arrest and briefly attended an outpatient drug treatment program.