Yes, it was that Justin Timberlake — singer, actor, producer, and Disney star in his youth — who was arraigned on a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated in Sag Harbor on Tuesday morning.
The arrest and arraignment, first reported by Newsday, immediately attracted international media attention, drew reporters in droves to the tiny but tony village, and tied up the police department's non-emergency phone line for hours. Later on Tuesday, after the release of the entertainer's somber-looking mug shot, internet memes began to pop up poking fun at a celebrity with an otherwise fairly squeaky-clean reputation.
According to a Sag Harbor Village Police Department press release, Mr. Timberlake was seen by an officer rolling through a stop sign and failing to stay in his lane while driving south on Madison Street, which features stop signs every couple of blocks and a speed limit of 20 miles per hour. The arrest was made at 12:37 a.m. Tuesday. He was driving a 2025 BMW.
"Upon investigation, it was determined that Mr. Timberlake was operating his vehicle in an intoxicated condition," the report said.
The actor, 43, who gave the officer an address in Tennessee, was held overnight at East Hampton Town police headquarters in Wainscott, which is typical for such a charge in Sag Harbor. He was arraigned in the morning. Newsday reported he refused a breath test multiple times, and that he told police he'd had "one martini." Sag Harbor Village Justice Carl Irace released him on his own recognizance, with a follow-up court date on July 24.
He is being represented by Eddie Burke Jr., who could not be reached for comment by press time yesterday.
Multiple media outlets and tabloids reported that Mr. Timberlake had been seen at the American Hotel earlier in the evening. A person answering the hotel phone yesterday declined to confirm those reports, referring the call to management.
Mr. Timberlake, who skyrocketed to fame as a teenager in the boy band 'NSYNC in the 1990s and early 2000s but has since embarked on a solo music and producing career, is scheduled to perform at Madison Square Garden on June 25 and 26.
This story has been updated since it was first published.