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NEW YORK — Justin Timberlake faced challenges performing field sobriety tests after being stopped by police in New York’s Hamptons in 2024. Officers suspected the singer of driving under the influence, as revealed in video footage released on Friday.
At one point during the tests, Timberlake admitted to the officers, “These are like really hard tests.”
The video footage, which spans approximately eight hours, captures the moment Timberlake was initially pulled over by Sag Harbor police. Authorities stated he ran a stop sign in the village center, drifted out of his lane, and exited his BMW with a noticeable smell of alcohol in June.
The former NSYNC star, now a successful solo artist and actor, informed the officers that he had only consumed one martini and was following friends home in the upscale beach community of the Hamptons, located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of New York City.
When questioned by an officer about his reason for being in town, Timberlake responded, “I’m on a world tour.”
“Doing what?” the officer asks.
“Hard to explain,” Timberlake says.
After stammering a bit, he says “World tour. I’m Justin Timberlake.”
The officer eventually responds: “You are Justin Timberlake? Do you have a license with you?”
Timberlake, who ultimately pleaded guilty to a lesser charge, is asked by officers to walk heel-to-toe in a straight line on the road and lift one leg. At times he seems flustered listening to the instructions. He apologizes to officers and tells them his heart is racing.
“I’m a little nervous,” Timberlake says at one point.
In the back seat of the police car, he asks: “Why are you arresting me?”
Back at the police station, Timberlake is informed he will be held overnight, to which he says, “I’m going to be here all night? You guys are wild, man.”
He asks the officer to keep the light on in the cell as they lock the door.
The release by Sag Harbor Police comes after the village and Timberlake’s lawyers agreed to disclose a redacted version of the footage. The Associated Press was among several media outlets that filed a records request seeking the release of the video.
Timberlake’s lawyers had sued to block the release of the video, arguing it would “devastate” Timberlake’s privacy by revealing “intimate, highly personal, and sensitive details.” They also said it would cause “severe and irreparable harm” to his reputation by subjecting him to “public ridicule and harassment.”
But in a joint filing with the village Friday, Timberlake’s lawyers acknowledged the video “does not constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy under” the state’s public information law and agreed to its release.
Timberlake’s lawyers and representatives didn’t immediately respond to emails seeking comment Friday.
Sag Harbor officials, in a statement provided by the village’s lawyer, Vincent Toomey, said they are pleased the matter was resolved and they were able to comply with state public records law.
“From the beginning of this matter, after Mr. Timberlake’s arrest, the Village has attempted to comply with the mandates of the Freedom of Information Law,” the statement reads. “As would be true in any case involving records or video footage from our Police Department, such material is reviewed and redacted to address public and officer safety concerns as well as personal privacy considerations.”
Timberlake pleaded guilty to impaired driving in September 2024.
The Tennessee native agreed to give a public safety announcement against the perils of drunken driving as part of the plea deal that knocked down his initial misdemeanor charge to a noncriminal traffic violation.
He was also sentenced to a $500 fine, 25 hours of community service and a 90-day suspension of his license.
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