Justin Timberlake’s attorney, Edward Burke Jr., said on July 26, 2024, that Timberlake “was not intoxicated” when arrested in Sag Harbor. That was the defense’s position, not a court finding. Police accounts described observations they said indicated impairment, and the case later ended with Timberlake pleading guilty to a reduced, noncriminal impaired-driving violation.
What did Timberlake’s attorney say?
After a court hearing in Sag Harbor on July 26, 2024, Burke said: “The most important fact to know about this case is that Justin was not intoxicated and should not have been arrested for DWI.” He also said, “Sometimes the police make mistakes and this is just one of those instances.” Burke was challenging errors in the initial charging paperwork and predicted the case would be dismissed. His remarks represented the defense’s argument; they did not establish that Timberlake was not intoxicated.
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The Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office acknowledged a “ministerial error” in the original charging document. Spokesperson Emily O’Neil said an amended accusatory instrument had been filed on July 2 and that “The facts and circumstance of the case have not been changed or amended.” The paperwork issue and the parties’ accounts of the stop were separate matters.
What did police say happened during the stop?
Timberlake was stopped shortly after midnight on June 18, 2024, in Sag Harbor, New York. Police accounts said he had allegedly driven through a stop sign and failed to stay in his lane. According to the police account described in court papers, the officer reported an odor of alcohol, bloodshot and glassy eyes, slowed speech and unsteadiness. The account also said Timberlake told the officer he had consumed one martini and described poor performance on standardized field sobriety tests. These are police-reported observations and allegations, not findings that a court made about every detail.
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How did the case end?
Timberlake did not obtain the dismissal Burke predicted. In September 2024, he pleaded guilty to a reduced, noncriminal impaired-driving violation. He received a $500 fine, 25 hours of community service, a 90-day suspension of his New York driving license and a requirement to make a public safety announcement. At sentencing on September 13, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney said: “Today, Mr. Timberlake chose to plead guilty and accept responsibility for driving while his ability was impaired by alcohol.”
The plea resolved the case, but it should not be read as a judicial finding on every disputed roadside detail or as a separate adjudication of Burke’s specific claim about Timberlake’s condition at the time of arrest.
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What did the body-camera footage show?
In March 2026, Sag Harbor police released redacted body-camera footage after Timberlake and the village agreed to disclosure following a records dispute. The Associated Press reported that the footage included the stop and field sobriety testing, and described Timberlake as struggling with the tests. AP also reported that he said in the footage, “these are like really hard tests.” The recording adds a contemporaneous account of the encounter, but it does not change the distinction between an attorney’s claim, police observations and the case’s legal disposition.
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