Justin Timberlake filed a lawsuit to prevent the dissemination of images captured by police body cameras during his arrest for driving under the influence in 2024 in New York.
The legal action, filed on Monday against the village of Sag Harbor and its police department, argues that the disclosure of the material would significantly affect the artist’s privacy by exposing “intimate, highly personal, and sensitive details”.
According to the court document, the publication of the video would also cause “severe and irreparable damage” to his reputation by subjecting him to “public ridicule and harassment.”
The lawsuit states that the recordings show the singer in an “acutely vulnerable state” during the encounter on the road with the authorities.
The text indicates that the images include details about his physical appearance, behavior, way of speaking, and performance during sobriety tests at the scene, as well as moments after his arrest and during his time in custody in the following hours.
A hearing was held on Monday, March 2, in a state court in Riverhead. According to Vincent Toomey, the lawyer representing Sag Harbor, Judge Joseph Farneti did not issue an immediate ruling.
Instead, he asked both parties to talk to explore a possible resolution and report back to the court later in the week.
The former NSYNC group member pleaded guilty in September 2024 to a charge related to impaired driving. The plea agreement reduced the initial misdemeanor charge to a non-criminal traffic violation.
According to the police, the incident occurred in June 2024 when Justin Timberlake allegedly failed to respect a stop sign in downtown Sag Harbor, veered out of his lane, and was stopped while driving a BMW. Authorities indicated that the singer smelled of alcohol when he exited the vehicle.
According to police reports, the artist told officers that he had consumed a martini and was following some friends back to their homes in the area.
As part of the plea agreement, Timberlake agreed to participate in a public service announcement about the risks of driving under the influence.
Additionally, he was sentenced to pay a fine of 500 dollars, complete 25 hours of community service, and face the suspension of his driver’s license for 90 days.
After his court appearance in 2024, the singer publicly stated: “Even if you’ve had just one drink, don’t get behind the wheel.” He added that he hoped other people could learn from his experience.
In the new lawsuit, Justin Timberlake’s lawyers claim they were notified on Sunday of the local authorities’ intention to disclose part of the recordings, with certain edits, to comply with public records access requests.
The total material, according to the writing, spans approximately eight hours and includes the initial detention, police interrogation, sobriety tests, and arrest.
Sag Harbor Mayor Thomas Gardella noted that authorities carefully reviewed the content to ensure that no information that could put agents or the public at risk was disclosed.
He also indicated that the state’s freedom of information law generally requires the release of police body camera recordings.
The court must determine whether the partial dissemination of the material is in accordance with current legislation or whether the privacy arguments raised by the artist’s defense prevail.
