What happened to Jake and Josh Harris? Shocking past!

The death of Captain Phill Harris is undoubtedly one of the saddest happenings in the world of Deadliest Catch. A pioneer in the world of crabbing, there wasn’t a single soul who doubted the prowess of the captain. At the helm of Cornelia Marie, Phill was an imposing figure. His authority shined in the way he conducted himself and his name commanded respect. But when the captain took his final breath on the 9th of February 2010, his absence was felt in the Bering Sea. After his departure, his sons Josh and Jake Harris decided to carry on the family name.

Life after Phill:

The void left by Phill Harris was not the one to be easily fulfilled. Even though his sons Josh and Jake stood at the helm of Cornelia in the absence of their father, the two young guns were reeling with their grief. Of the two, Josh is the one who is now at the helm of Cornelia Marie. Josh captained the ship alongside Casey McManus and the pair have made regular appearances in the reality TV series, Deadliest Catch.

Contrasting stories

Josh Harris:

While Josh continued to carry on his family name at the Bering sea, Jake could never fully recover from the loss of his father. Josh joined his father as a greenhorn taking the deckhand position. After his passing, Josh did not rush the thing working the next few years as deckhand of “Time Bandit.” Finally, Josh began to lead Cornelia Marie as owner and captain. His exploit as a fisherman was documented on the Discovery Channel show “Deadliest Catch” and its several spin-offs. Josh made 193 episodes of appearances on the show from 2007-2022.

While Josh was doing the best he could to continue the family legacy a dark past came to drag him down. Josh was fired from the show after the news of his rape allegations against a child when he was 16 years old made rounds on the internet. Relating to the case Josh pleaded guilty, and charges were then amended to one count of Fourth Degree Assault, and one count of Communicating with a Minor for Immoral Purposes. Even though Josh no longer will be participating in the television show he continues to work as a commercial fisherman behind the scene.

Jake Harris:

Like his older brother, Jake Harris began as a greenhorn and things looked bright when his father was around. He later worked as a deckhand at Cornelia Marie and occasionally joined Sig Hansen‘s Northwestern. However after his father’s death, Jake could not carry on. In 2012, he left the series and thus began his problems with the law.

On the wrong side:

Jake’s legal troubles began in January 2018 when he was arrested after a confrontation with a ranger in Washington’s Bay View State Park. The confrontation led to a police chase and Jack’s RV was found. After inspecting the vehicle, the police found that Jack had been driving with more than half an ounce of heroin and various materials used for distribution. Jack declined to take a sobriety test which only added to the police’s case. Jack was later arrested for driving under influence and for possession.

How it all began?

While Jack is not the one to talk candidly about his experiences, he did talk about his addiction. He first got hooked on drugs way back in his teen years. After an injury that left Jack with some broken bones, Jack turned to opiates.

Affected by the death of his father, Jack’s addiction continued to grow. He turned to drugs and alcohol to fill the void left by his father. In a special episode of Deadliest Catch, Jack revealed the extent of his addiction.

“[I] got a big hole in my heart and tried to fill it up with everything that wasn’t good for it,” he admitted. “It took me a while to realize what I wanted out of life. It was a big trip up, threw my world upside down, put me in a really sad place for a little bit, kinda made things worse before they got better.”

In prison:

Jake served in jail on counts of possession drug and driving under influence. He received an 18-month sentence on the 1st of August, 2019.

Jake Harris wiki/bio:

Youngest of two, Jake was born on March 18, 1983, in Washington, United States. Jake is the son of  Phill Harris and Mary Harris. Jake attended Monroe High School.