Controversial — and very impressive — police body camera footage of pop star Justin Timberlake’s arrest for drunk driving in June 2024 on eastern Long Island was released late last week after the singer’s legal battle against the small former whaling town to keep the “embarrassing” footage under wraps. The dispute led to a negotiated release and redaction of some moments that his lawyer said were so sensitive that they amounted to a major invasion of the singer’s privacy.
In June 2024, while visiting the beach city of Sag Harbor, Timberlake was stopped and after some traffic violations, was soon arrested for DUI. The singer was required to take a sobriety test, was questioned by officers while handcuffed in the small town area, and was finally placed in a holding cell alone for the night. Footage of all these moments was released by the city’s police department on Friday, 21 months after several media outlets sought it via Freedom of Information Act requests.
Releasing eight hours of footage surrounding the Grammy winner’s arrest wasn’t something the former boy band star turned actor — or the team behind his public image — wanted millions of people to see. Once their release was announced at the beginning of March, Timberlake’s legal team filed for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to prevent the city from releasing the footage to the public.
That Monday, his lawyers met with a judge in Sag Harbor, arguing that releasing the unedited footage would constitute an invasion of privacy. They requested either a block on release or a special judicial review of the potentially embarrassing material. From a legal standpoint, they said this would ensure that any content not subject to disclosure under New York’s Freedom of Information Act would be excluded.
Attorney Edward Burke Jr. said Timberlake’s release would “destroy” his privacy by revealing “intimate, very personal and sensitive details.” He added that this would cause “serious and irreparable damage” to the singer’s reputation by exposing him to “public ridicule and harassment.” The footage was eventually released on Friday after heated disagreements between the singer’s legal team and the Village led to a partially redacted version being agreed upon.
“Since Justin Timberlake’s arrest, the village administration and police have attempted to comply with Freedom of Information Act requirements. We are pleased that the lawsuit over the release of video footage involving Mr. Timberlake has been resolved and that the village is able to comply with its legal obligation to release materials subject to disclosure under FOIL,” the law firm of VIncent Toomey said in a statement sent to FOIL. Hollywood Reporter.
Lawyers representing Timberlake did not return an email and call he made THR on monday.
What was released quickly set the internet on fire over the weekend, with several moments catching fire, becoming memes or sparking controversy. Whether police went too far in their treatment of the pop star – who was seen in one clip handcuffed to a table during interrogation – has become a point of contention. In the footage, Timberlake himself questions the officers as they assure the bewildered singer that this is standard procedure for members of the public accused of high-risk drink driving.
“You guys are treating me like a criminal,” Timberlake told two officers. Earlier, when he first approached him, he said: “I’m on a world tour.”
“What?” asks an officer.
“World Tour… I’m Justin Timberlake.”
The moment has already become a viral sensation, with online tastemakers revisiting past controversies surrounding the singer — from the fallout from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show to renewed scrutiny in the wake of Britney Spears’ best-selling memoir, which reshaped public perceptions of their relationship.
However, the most memorable moment of the arrest — captured in edited footage approved by Timberlake — has already delighted millions as it quickly spread across the Internet.
In another clip, a woman who has not been identified but was with Timberlake rushes to officers after he is placed in a police car. Expressing her shock, she insisted on giving Timberlake his cell phone.
“Stop that. Impossible. Don’t say that,” she told the officers. “You’re arresting Justin Timberlake now? Stop him. Why?” She adds, trying to have a moment with her friend. “Can you guys do me a favor because you liked ‘Bye Bye Bye’ or ‘SexyBack?’
During a sobriety test outside his car, Timberlake appears visibly intoxicated — though not incapacitated — after being pulled over for drifting into oncoming traffic and ignoring a stop sign. In what likely sealed his fate that night, body camera footage showed him unable to complete a simple nine-step heel-to-toe walk.
The moment of humor comes when Timberlake is handed the booking form. After being examined, he turns to one of the officers and shouts, in reference to his listed race: “White?!” The moment plays out as an eerie one, highlighting his apparent astonishment at interactions with law enforcement that many people of color experience much more frequently.
But the darkest moment in the footage comes when Timberlake is placed in a holding cell at the local police station. As the heavy door begins to close, the officers ask if they will keep the light on.
According to reports, during the first quarter of 2025, an average of 37 people were killed every day in drunk driving accidents.
In the summer of 2024, a Suffolk County judge accepted Timberlake’s guilty plea as part of a deal that reduced his sentence and allowed the pop star to avoid further prison time. As part of the plea deal, the singer agreed to serve 25 to 40 hours of community service and pay a fine.
