Justin Timberlake Pleads Guilty to Impaired Driving, Required to Make Public Safety Announcement
Written by djfrosty on September 13, 2024
Justin Timberlake pleaded guilty to impaired driving in New York’s Sag Harbor Village Court Friday (Sept. 13).
According to the Associated Press, Timberlake was sentenced to a $500 fine with a $260 surcharge as well as 25 hours of community service at a nonprofit of his choosing. He’s also required to make a public safety announcement, the appropriateness of which concerned Judge Carl Irace, who, according to the AP, expressed disappointment with the prosecutors’ proposed plea deal. In Irace’s opinion, Timberlake’s intention to make the statement shortly after court proceedings would not give the *NSYNC alum enough time to reflect on his actions, which is why the judge added on community service requirements to the sentence.
“I did not live up to the standards that I try to hold for myself,” he told the court, according to AP. He then said to the judge, “I should’ve had better judgment. I understand the seriousness of this.”
Billboard has reached out to Timberlake’s rep and lawyer, Ed Burke, for comment.
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Shortly after the hearing, Timberlake addressed media outside the courthouse with his statement about the dangers of impaired driving. “Even if you’ve had one drink, don’t get behind the wheel of a car,” he said as cameras flashed. “There’s so many alternatives — call a friend, take an Uber. There’s many travel apps. Take a taxi.”
“This is a mistake that I made, but I’m hoping that whoever’s watching and listening right now can learn from this mistake,” he added. “I know that I certainly have.”
The hearing comes three months after the “SexyBack” singer was arrested on suspicion of driving a vehicle while intoxicated in the Hamptons.
Timberlake and his legal team had originally pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor drunken driving charge during an August virtual court appearance, where his driving privileges were suspended by Irace. CNN also reported at the time that the judge had admonished his attorney for making comments about the case to the media ahead of the arraignment.
It was first reported that Timberlake had reached a plea deal two days prior to Friday’s hearing. The deal wraps up a months-long legal saga that began when Sag Harbor police pulled him over for “failing to stop at a duly posted stop sign and failing to maintain his lane of travel” while operating a 2025 BMW in New York, according to a statement by law enforcement at the time.
The police report obtained by Billboard also cites an officer quoting Timberlake as saying “I had one martini and I followed my friends home.”
The “Mirrors” artist was midway through his Forget Tomorrow World Tour when he was arrested. The case hasn’t seemed to negatively affect the trek, which is currently on track to gross more than $250 million over 87 dates, according to Billboard Boxscore data.
Watch Timberlake speak after his hearing below: