money MTV 'Jackass' star Bam Margera found at hotel bar after leaving Florida rehab center
DELRAY BEACH — Actor Brandon "Bam" Margera, best-known as the star of the former MTV show "Jackass," was found Wednesday after he left a Delray Beach treatment facility without authorization this week, police said Thursday.
Officers made contact with Margera on Wednesday after he was reported missing from a treatment facility, Delray Beach police spokesperson Ted White said.
Margera was brought to the treatment center, which authorities did not name, under the Marchman Act, which under Florida law provides for an involuntary or voluntary assessment and treatment of a person suspected of abusing alcohol or drugs.
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Why did celebrity, Bam Margera, leave rehab center?
The 42-year-old advised the site's staff Monday that he was leaving because he was dissatisfied with the facilities, according to a city police incident report.
He told the staff that he was going to check into another facility, the report said. Police attempted to locate Margera there but did not find him. A staff member at the second site told officers Tuesday that Margera called the day before but still had not checked himself in.
A staff member from the initial treatment center informed police that Margera sent text messages indicating he had checked into a hotel. An officer arrived at the hotel and observed him sitting at the bar with a group of people.
The officer observed no signs of suspicious activity, and Margera advised he would return to his room to go to bed, the report said. He told an officer he was in contact with his guardian to get the necessary paperwork to change facilities.
Police described Margera as calm and said he was in no apparent danger. The staff at the facility he was staying in told officers Margera had not made any alarming statements about wanting to harm himself or others.
There were discussions about moving Margera to a detox facility in Lake Worth Beach, but there was no court paperwork authorizing the request, police said.
The website TMZ reported that Margera was taken back to the initial rehab facility Wednesday without objecting. White said Thursday he could not confirm whether Margera had indeed returned to a treatment center.
On Wednesday, Margera posted a picture of himself and another man on his Instagram account, which has 2.4 million followers. Magera wrote that the man is an "MMA fighter, chiropractor and ten years sober Dominick..." He is "my new AA sponsor."
Julius Whigham II covers public safety and criminal justice for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on Twitter at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: MTV star Bam Margera found at a bar after leaving Florida rehab
