A native of Winchester, Massachusetts, and a 1988 graduate of Winchester High School, Doherty worked as a ski instructor and trained as a pilot at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University before joining the United States Navy.
A native of Winchester, Massachusetts, and a 1988 graduate of Winchester High School, Doherty was the second of three children born to Bernard and Barbara Doherty. He worked as a ski instructor and trained as a pilot at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University before joining the United States Navy.