SAG HARBOR, N.Y. (Court TV) — Justin Timberlake has one year to complete 25 hours of community service at a nonprofit of his choosing as part of his sentence for driving while impaired, a traffic violation to which he pleaded guilty on Friday in a deal with New York prosecutors.
Justin Timberlake appears in court next to his attorney where he pleaded guilty to impaired driving, resolving the criminal case stemming from his June 2024 arrest in New York’s Hamptons. (POOL/T E McMorrow via Court TV)
The pop star was arrested the morning of June 18, 2024, in downtown Sag Harbor — a seaside village in eastern Long Island’s tony Hamptons area — for driving his BMW through a stop sign and straying from his lane. He was charged with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor offense that carries possible jail time. Timberlake pleaded not guilty twice because of a clerical error that led Suffolk County prosecutors to refile the charge.
Flanked by security guards and dressed in a gray cardigan, pleated chinos and what appeared to a double strand pearl necklace, Timberlake waded through a throng of reporters Friday morning outside Sag Harbor’s historic municipal building. In exchange for his guilty plea to the reduced charge of impaired driving, Timberlake agreed to pay $760, have his license suspended in New York state for 90 days, and deliver a “public safety announcement” outside the courthouse immediately after the hearing.
Timberlake said he regretted his conduct and hoped to use his “platform” to prevent others from repeating his mistake.
“I found myself in a position where I could have made a different decision,” he told reporters after the hearing. “Even if you have one drink, don’t get behind the wheel of a car.”
Timberlake told the officer who pulled him over that he had one martini, according to a police report, then proceeded to perform “poorly” on field sobriety tests. Timberlake’s lawyer, Edward Burke, Jr., told reporters Friday the plea deal with prosecutors affirmed Timberlake’s claim that was not “intoxicated” when he was pulled over and arrested.
Timberlake entered his plea in a meeting room that was turned into a courtroom for the high-profile proceeding. Lawyers and journalists filled the seats, straining to hear Timberlake speak as he responded to prosecutors’ questions about the night he was arrested. He answered “yes” when asked if he consumed an alcoholic beverage that impaired his ability to drive and “no” in response to whether he consented to a breathalyzer test — a move that could result in his license being suspended for a year by New York State’s Department of Motor Vehicles.
Sag Harbor Village Judge Carl Irace tacked on the community service requirement after expressing concern that prosecutors did not include service or treatment of some kind in their plea proposal. Irace said the proposal did not adequately address two goals of sentencing, rehabilitation and individual deterrence. Irace also questioned the value of a public safety announcement, suggesting it showed lenience on the part of prosecutors and may undermine the goals of sentencing.
Nevertheless, the judge noted he was in the “awkward” position of being bound to the proposal because it met legal requirements without “shocking his conscience,” a statutory factor he could have invoked to reject the proposal.
“I appreciate that Mr. Timberlake wants to accept responsibility for his conduct,” Irace said. “However, I find it lacking when it comes to the sentencing goal of individual deterrence.”
The judge then turned to Timberlake and asked if he was open to community service. “I’d be honored to,” Timberlake responded.
The judge went on to press Timberlake on whether he had reflected on his conduct. Timberlake responded with a lengthy, occasionally meandering statement that he later summarized for the cameras in his public safety announcement.
“No one in this courtroom is more disappointed in myself than me,” he told the judge. “I did not live up to the standards that I try to hold myself to.”
Irace said he found Timberlake’s comments “sincere” and thanked him for “speaking from the heart” before issuing his judgment.
In response to the judge’s comments, Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Patrick O’Connell said his office hoped Timberlake would use his “celebrity” status to draw attention to the dangers of drunk driving. O’Connell noted his office received more media inquiries on Timberlake’s case than for any other in its history, including the pending case against Rex Heuermann, who is charged in the deaths of six women whose bodies were found on Gilgo Beach.
“I think anything Mr. Timberlake says will be repeated,” O’Connell said.
