How a Mississippi man’s embarrassing arrest in a ‘Captain America’ costume set him on the road to sobriety

Dacula, Georgia — In September 2019, David Hobbs was arrested in an alley in his hometown of Clarksdale, Mississippi, for breaking into a shed in his backyard.

Unfortunately, he was dressed as the comic book character “Captain America” ​​at the time. So of course, the next day, photos of the handcuffed superhero went viral. Cable networks and newspapers around the world made him their laughing stock.

“I really felt like my life was over,” Hobbs, 41, told CBS News. “All these people were talking about me, making fun of me, and I thought, ‘Man, I’m such an embarrassment to my family.'”

Besides his family, his childhood friend Trey Lewis was one of the few people who didn’t laugh, according to Hobbs.

“After I understood the details of it, I mean, it was just sadness,” Lewis said. “I mean, this was clearly drug-induced.”

He was right. Hobbs had been an addict his entire adult life. Fortunately, his old friend Lewis, whom Hobbs hadn’t seen in 20 years, now owned Good Landing Recovery, a treatment program in Dacula, Georgia.

“I came here with a suitcase full of dirty clothes and half a cigarette,” Hobbs recently told a group of program participants. “That’s all I had when I came into rehab.”

Lance let Hobbs complete the program for free and it was a success. Hobbs has now been sober for five years.

That’s why Hobbs now looks back at the infamous photo of his arrest with nostalgia. The worst day of his life has become his best day.

“What was meant to destroy me was actually the stepping stone to rebuilding me,” Hobbs said. “…If you still have breath in your lungs and you’re still alive, there’s a chance. You can turn it around.”