Justin Timberlake's arrest over the summer in the Hamptons is the DUI case that keeps on giving, or rather, taking away.
A New York judge stripped the singer, who had a Tennessee license, of his driving privileges and re-charged him with misdemeanor drunken driving following an early morning arrest in June.
A paperwork error — the original charging document apparently lacked a police sergeant's signature — led to the unusual re-arraignment. Timberlake appeared in court in person for the first arraignment, which was held the same day he was arrested.
Sag Harbor Village Judge Carl Irace on Friday accepted another not guilty plea from the 43-year-old, who appeared virtually because he's on tour (you know, the world tour). The singer will perform in Antwerp, Belgium, on Saturday and Sunday before heading to the U.K.
Irace also threatened to strip Timberlake's attorney, Edward Burke Jr., of the ability to speak publicly about the case by raising the possibility of a gag order, saying some of Burke's comments to the media had been inappropriate. The attorney told reporters outside court last week that “Justin Timberlake was not intoxicated” when he was arrested and jailed in July. Burke has also maintained that police had made “very significant mistakes.”
Timberlake told the arresting officer that he had had a martini and was following friends home from a Sag Harbor hotel when he was pulled over in a gray 2025 BMW utility vehicle about 12:30 a.m. on June 18, according to court documents reviewed by The Times.
“His eyes were bloodshot and glassy, there was a strong odor of alcohol on his breath, he was unable to focus, his speech was slow, his walking was labored and he failed all standardized field sobriety tests,” police said in a court filing. Timberlake failed to stop at a stop sign and had difficulty staying in his lane, police said in a June statement.
The next hearing on the misdemeanor charge is scheduled for Aug. 9. Representatives for Timberlake did not immediately respond Friday to The Times' request for comment.
Times staff writer Nardine Saad and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
