In an attempt to block the release of video footage showing his June 2024 drunk driving arrest while intoxicated (DWI) and two traffic citations, Justin Timberlake has taken legal action.
According to the local police report, after refusing to take a breathalyser test, the superstar singer/songwriter said he only had one martini at a hotel bar shortly before he was pulled over.
Alleging the release of police body camera footage of the defendant’s arrest would invade his privacy, on Monday (3.02,), the musician’s attorneys Edward Burke Jr. and Michael J. Del Piano, filed a petition at the Suffolk County Supreme Court.
“Public dissemination of this footage would cause severe and irreparable harm to (Timberlake’s) personal and professional reputation, subject (him) to public ridicule and harassment, and serve no legitimate public interest,” read the lawsuit, according to People.
In addition, Timberlake’s lawyers claimed that distribution of the video would expose their client’s car and show “highly personal details unrelated to public oversight of governmental operations”.
The aforementioned move comes shortly after officials at the Sag Harbor Village Police Department received a request for the release of the body camera footage under the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).
In September 2024, the 45-year old artist pleaded guilty to the less serious offense of driving while impaired under a plea deal, and was sentenced to 25 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $500 fine plus a $260 surcharge, and his driver’s license was suspended for 90 days.
Following the ruling, Timberlake declared, “Even if you’ve had one drink, don’t get behind the wheel of a car. This is a mistake I have made, but I hope whoever is watching and listening right now can learn from this. I know I certainly have.”
At press time, Justin Timberlake has not yet publicly commented on the petition.
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Author: Al Dente
Photo: Ted Eytan