Justin Timberlake was arraigned for a second time in his driving whereas intoxicated (DWI) case on Aug. 2.
The singer, who’s on a world tour, appeared just about for the listening to in Sag Harbor, N.Y., the place he was pulled over in June. Throughout the listening to, the decide knowledgeable Timberlake that his driver’s license can be suspended and got here down on his lawyer, Edward Burke Jr., for “irresponsible” feedback.
What occurred on the listening to?
Timberlake appeared through video convention from Antwerp, Belgium, carrying a black collared shirt, in response to NBC Information. He pleaded not responsible to a revised misdemeanor cost of driving whereas intoxicated within the Hamptons village.
Burke withdrew a earlier movement to dismiss the case. Sag Harbor Justice Carl Irace formally suspended Timberlake’s license in New York. (The suspension may carry over to different states through the Interstate Driver’s License Compact.) The license will probably be suspended pending the result of the case.
Irace admonished Burke for making “irresponsible” feedback to the media in what the decide known as an “try to poison the case earlier than it even begins.” The decide threatened — however has not but imposed — a gag order. (Burke advised the press exterior courtroom final week that Timberlake “was not intoxicated.”)
The subsequent listening to is about for Aug. 9, however Timberlake just isn’t required to seem in individual at that one both. That will probably be adopted by a listening to scheduled for Sept. 13, which he could also be required to attend.
After Friday’s listening to, Burke briefly spoke to the press. Requested if his shopper maintains that he was not intoxicated on the time of his arrest, Burke stated they’re certainly sustaining that. He additionally stated he doesn’t assume the decide will impose a gag order towards him: “Hey, all of us have jobs to do, and we’re obligated to zealously defend our purchasers, and that’s what I plan on doing.”
Justin Timberlake’s lawyer Edward D. Burke Jr. on Timberlake’s DWI case and a decide’s menace to impose a gag order.
Timberlake pleaded not responsible to a revised DWI cost in a digital courtroom look in NY as we speak
For extra details about the case: https://t.co/yMOaKbI4pq pic.twitter.com/eXPWeR10PL
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) August 2, 2024
In New York, a misdemeanor DWI conviction may lead to as much as one yr in jail and $500 to $1,000 in fines. Nevertheless, “it will be a uncommon factor that anyone, even with a [chemical test] refusal, would serve jail time as a primary offender with out an accident or egregious circumstances,” legal professional Peter T. Goodrich, of Goodrich & Bendish in New York, beforehand advised Yahoo.
Goodrich additionally defined that, separate from Timberlake’s felony case, he can have a listening to with the Division of Motor Autos over his refusal of the breathalyzer. Beneath New York legislation, anybody who drives a motorized vehicle within the state is deemed to have given their consent to chemical testing to find out the alcohol or drug content material of their blood. Refusing to take action throughout a DWI arrest leads to the individual’s license being revoked for at the very least one yr, impartial of a felony conviction.
Burke has not but responded to Yahoo Leisure’s request for remark in regards to the Aug. 2 listening to.
How did we get right here?
Shortly after midnight on June 18, a Sag Harbor police officer pulled over Timberlake in his BMW after the officer stated he noticed him weave out of a lane and undergo a cease signal, in response to the arrest report. The officer stated Timberlake, who had been on the restaurant and bar of the American Lodge, had “bloodshot and glassy” eyes, was unsteady on his ft and that there was an odor of alcohol on his breath. Timberlake advised the officer he had “one martini,” in response to the report. He carried out poorly on the sphere sobriety check, the officer claimed, and refused a breathalyzer check. Timberlake was held in police custody till his arraignment, at which he pleaded not responsible and was launched with out bail.
At a listening to on July 26, for which Timberlake additionally appeared just about, his legal professional attacked the case on procedural grounds, saying the arresting officer’s supervisor didn’t log off on the felony criticism. The Suffolk County district legal professional’s workplace stated there was a “ministerial error” within the arrest paperwork that had been mounted and that Timberlake can be re-arraigned underneath the revised criticism.
It was after that listening to that Burke advised the press his shopper “was not intoxicated. I’ll say it once more: Justin Timberlake was not intoxicated, and we’re assured that cost — that felony cost — will probably be dismissed.” A Suffolk County district legal professional’s spokesperson stated in a press release, “We stand able to litigate the underlying information of this case in courtroom, relatively than within the press.”
Why wasn’t Timberlake in courtroom?
The singer — whose solely remark in regards to the DWI cost was when he was onstage in Chicago instantly following his arrest and referred to having a “powerful week” — hasn’t attended the final two hearings as a result of he’s been in Europe on his “Overlook Tomorrow World Tour.” He has exhibits in Belgium on Aug. 3 and Aug. 4, after which he’ll go to the U.Okay. for a number of exhibits.
If he’s mandated to seem in individual at his subsequent listening to on Sept. 13, it will likely be throughout a break in his exhibits. Based on his tour schedule, Timberlake will probably be in France for a tour date on Sept. 7 however then has nothing till a Sept. 28 present in Newark, N.J.
