Voz.us

Voz media US Voz.us

Justin Timberlake refused to take a breathalyzer test after being arrested for drunk driving

The singer told officers he only had a martini, but officers made a scathing report contradicting the pop artist's version.

Justin Timberlake mugshot

Foto policial de

Topics:

Singer Justin Timberlake was arrested for allegedly driving while intoxicated after running a stop sign and leaving his lane in the Hamptons, New York, on Tuesday morning.

Later, Timberlake's mugshot revealed that, according to a scathing police report, 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.”

According to various reports, Timberlake was supposedly at a dinner with friends at the American Hotel in Sag Harbor, Long Island. After dinner, he drove a gray 2025 BMW just after midnight and was almost immediately stopped by officers in the luxurious enclave.

According to the complaint, the former NSYNC star told officers he had only had a martini while following his friend. However, the tabloid New York Post reported that a witness said that the singer was drunk during dinner and that he even took a drink from a man who had gone to the bathroom.

After being arrested and taken to a police station in nearby East Hampton, Timberlake refused to take a breathalyzer test up to three times, a situation that some court experts say could complicate his court case.

“It's not uncommon for individuals arrested on suspicion of DWI to refuse a breathalyzer test,” said Texas trial attorney Tray Gober, who handles DWI cases.

“"This decision can be motivated by various factors, including prior advice from legal counsel or a misunderstanding of the legal implications.”

“Typically, such refusal triggers an automatic suspension of a driver’s license under implied consent laws, which state that drivers implicitly consent to sobriety tests when they obtain their licenses,” Gober elaborated. “Additionally, the refusal can be introduced in court as evidence of guilt, although the implications of this can vary significantly between jurisdictions and judges. The prosecution might argue that the refusal indicates the suspect's awareness of their likely intoxication."

However, other defense attorneys disagreed with Gober's assessment and told Fox News Digital that the singer made the right decision to protect his rights.

“Justin did the right thing in order to preserve his legal defense,” famed criminal defense attorney Michael Huff told the news network. “When detained for suspicion of DUI, you should not submit to the breathalyzer nor the field sobriety standardized tests (FSTs). Doing so provides the investigator with evidence that s/he may not have otherwise. Thereafter, the investigator may seek a warrant to extract blood for examination of your blood alcohol content (BAC).”

"Notwithstanding, Justin’s defense counsel will have room to argue and present a full legal defense strategy based on other possible factors that may have caused his appearance of impairment," Huff detailed. “It is not certain he was driving while intoxicated just because he was pulled over.”

So far, Timberlake has been charged with one count of driving while intoxicated, along with citations for failure to keep right and failure to stop at a stop sign. Now, the singer must appear virtually for his first court hearing on July 26.

The event occurs precisely when the renowned singer, 43, is on a world tour promoting his sixth album "Everything I Thought It Was." He is expected to have a show in Chicago this Saturday and another next week in New York.

tracking