The City of Smithville is in the limelight on YouTube after an altercation on Center Hill Lake ended with a prominent social media influencer with a citation and a date in General Sessions Court. The influencer has asked his 3.7 million followers to show up at the DeKalb Courthouse to protest the citation.

The incident occurred a couple of weeks ago near Hurricane Bridge, where 23-year-old Cody Detwiler of Indiana, better known as WhistlinDiesel on social media was out with a video crew videoing one of his latest stunts, attempting to power a flat-bottom Jon boat with an industrial electric shop fan.

WhistlinDiesel and his #GoodContentGang are known for producing dangerous car stunt videos with big trucks, destroying the vehicles in the process. His YouTube channel has over 600 million views with 3.7 million subscribers.

In the video on Center Hill Lake (www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwrBoNWUFqs), WhistlinDiesel and his friends are seen swamping the Jon boat and creating a wake in a “No Wake” zone near the launch ramp, where other watercraft are nearby. The crew then get into an altercation with another boater, who turned out to be an off-duty Putnam County officer.

The men are seen arguing and exchanging insults, before the video cuts to another encounter on the lake a few minutes later, this time between WhistlinDiesel and a patrolling Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency boat.

WhistlinDiesel, now on a jet ski, and his friends, now on a ski boat, are questioned by TWRA officers, who inspect the number of lifejackets on board the boat, checking for a working fire extinguisher, and asking for IDs to check for underage drinking. The boat was finally cleared, but WhistlinDiesel and another Jet Ski rider were cited for no boater registration and reckless operation for spraying the boat, or turning the Jet Ski so water would splash onto the boat and its passengers.

The citations didn’t sit well with WhistlinDiesel. Talking to his subscribers on YouTube, Detwiler said, “I’m hereby inviting all of you to meet me at the Smithville, County Courthouse, June 1, at 9:00 a.m. We have court together. I need you guys there for emotional support.” WhistlinDiesel asked his followers to hold signs to picket outside the courthouse, then after court, invited his followers to Center Hill Lake to ride jet skis and splash.

The court date has since been changed however because of the Memorial Day holiday and the judge being out of town. The new court date is June 8, at 9:00 a.m. 

On his YouTube channel, WhistlinDiesel specified that he did not have a problem with DeKalb County or Smithville, saying, “I want to specify the officer here is from Putnam County, TN, not DeKalb County. The DeKalb County Sheriffs Department has been extremely professional and respectful through the situation.”

This is not the first time WhistlinDiesel has made a call to action. After a high school student in Norwich, NY, had his tractor impounded by police after driving the vehicle to school, Detwiler offered his followers $500 each to anyone who drove their tractors or lawnmowers through town the following Monday. The result was a line of tractors and lawn equipment in an impromptu parade towards the high school.

It is not known how many YouTubers will take WhistlinDiesel up on his request for support during his court date, but the DeKalb County Courthouse does not allow cameras or cell phones in the building while court is in session, and metal detectors are in use.

If WhistlinDiesel’s crew does decide to visit the small hamlet of Smithville, we certainly hope they enjoy eating at some of our fine dining establishments and take in some of the unique shopping boutiques located in and around the square.