Justin Timberlake’s lawyer pushed for the singer’s driving-while-intoxicated case to be dismissed on Friday, July 26, claiming in court that local Long Island cops bungled the paperwork.
Timberlake’s lawyer, Edward Burke Jr., told Judge Carl Irace that a supervisor didn’t sign off on the accusatory paperwork drafted by a rookie cop, which, he said, was legally problematic. “This case is jurisdictionally defective, your honor,†Burke said in a tiny Sag Harbor courtroom that was packed with reporters there for Timberlake intel and drivers there for their own various traffic infractions. Timberlake’s lawyer seemed to acknowledge a rumor about the younger officer who pulled over his client and didn’t recognize the former ’N Sync star when he said the paperwork was “sworn†by an officer rather than someone with real authority — “someone in control of a young, 90-day police officer.â€
“Both forms and procedures have their place and purpose in the administration of the law,†Burke said. “Without them, your honor, we would have chaos.†Prosecutors said that they refiled the paperwork, called an “accusatory instrument,†in the proper way on July 2. The judge did not dismiss the case but will give both sides an opportunity to argue the issue, and he’ll make a decision after that.
Because the accusatory instrument was amended, Timberlake has to be arraigned again. That proceeding is scheduled for August 2, and Timberlake will appear via video. (He is on his world tour, after all.)
Following the proceeding, Burke insisted on Timberlake’s innocence, telling the group of reporters gathered: “Justin should not have been arrested for driving while intoxicated. The police made a number of significant errors in this case.†Sometimes, Burke said, police make mistakes “just like every one or us,†which is what happened here, and that “Justin respects law enforcement.â€
“But the facts remain: He was not intoxicated. I’ll say it again: Justin Timberlake was not intoxicated,†Burke continued, saying he was confident the case would be thrown out. As for how Timberlake was doing? “He’s doing very good. He’s doing just fine.â€
The Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office was not concerned about the paperwork issue and said prosecutors refiled the paperwork to correct it after there was a “ministerial error in the original accusatory instrument.â€Â “The facts and circumstance of the case have not been changed or amended,†the prosecutors’ office said in a statement. “We stand ready to litigate the underlying facts of this case in court, rather than in the press.â€
While Timberlake was not present for this morning’s proceeding, the quaint main drag of Sag Harbor was somewhat abuzz with celebrity drama. Some passersby who spotted news cameras whispered to each other: “What’s going on? Who’s here?†Those who learned it was for Timberlake, but that he was not present, could be heard opining on what they believed was pointlessness.Â
One athleisure-clad woman, who appeared to be pushing a teddy-bear-faced breed of dog in a stroller, asked before the proceeding: “Is it Justin Timberlake?†When answered in the affirmative, with the disappointing caveat that he would not be in attendance, she, too, offered kind confusion about press presence. “But he’s not going to be here.â€
Timberlake was charged with driving while intoxicated following an incident on June 18. Sag Harbor police pulled over a gray 2025 BMW driven by Timberlake shortly after midnight. They claim in documents that he blew through a stop sign and veered out of the proper lane. Timberlake told the officer that he was following friends home from the nearby American Hotel, a popular bar and restaurant in the area.
The officer who stopped Timberlake over claimed that “his eyes were bloodshot and glassy, a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage was emanating from his breath, he was unable to divide attention, he had slowed speech, he was unsteady afoot, and he performed poorly on all standardized field sobriety tests,†per a criminal complaint against him.
Timberlake was collared and charged with misdemeanor driving while intoxicated. His mugshot went viral right away and even turned into a piece of art in Sag Harbor. Timberlake, who purportedly refused a breath test, was arraigned later that day, then released, according to the Associated Press.