By Jesse Zanger
Updated: March 20, 2026 / 11:57 PM EDT / CBS New York
Body-worn camera video from Justin Timberlake’s June 2024 DWI arrest on Long Island was released to media outlets Friday. The footage was partially redacted before release.
What the video shows
The bodycam captures Timberlake in the driver’s seat talking with an officer. The officer tells him the reason for the stop was that he was “veering off to the left” and failing to stop at stop signs. Timberlake apologizes and explains he is driving a rental and is “on tour.” When asked what he is doing he replies, “a world tour,” and identifies himself as Justin Timberlake when the officer requests his name and license.
Officers are shown administering field sobriety tests. Timberlake tells them he was following friends back to his house and appears nervous, stumbling while walking and at times expressing frustration. He calls the sobriety exercises “really hard tests” and declines a breathalyzer. An officer then places him under arrest for suspicion of driving while intoxicated, instructs him to turn around, handcuffs him and puts him in the back of a police vehicle.
The footage also shows officers speaking with a woman who had been with Timberlake; she is told Timberlake is under arrest but that she is free to leave. On camera she pleads, “Justin Timberlake’s under arrest? Can you help me, please? Can we do anything? Can you please stop it? I’ll do anything.”
Legal fight and release
Timberlake’s lawyers had sued the Village of Sag Harbor to block the video’s release, arguing it showed him “in an acutely vulnerable state” and would cause “severe and irreparable harm” to his reputation after a Freedom of Information Law request. Court records show the legal team and the village agreed to release the footage with redactions. Acting Supreme Court Justice Joseph Farneti said the redacted release “does not constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” Officials say about eight hours of bodycam footage exist from the stop and arrest; Sag Harbor Mayor Thomas Gardella told the Associated Press the village is “trying to be as transparent as can be with this footage.”
Disposition
Timberlake, 45, pleaded guilty to driving while ability impaired, a lesser charge. He was sentenced to a fine and community service and recorded a public safety announcement in which he acknowledged the mistake and urged others not to drive after drinking: “This is a mistake that I’ve made, but I’m hoping whoever’s watching and listening right now can learn from this mistake… even one drink, don’t get behind the wheel of a car.”