Justin Timberlake appeared in court in Sag Harbour today to plead guilty to a lesser charge of driving while impaired after making a deal with the prosecutors. He was ordered by the judge to pay a fine of $500; his drivers licence is suspended in New York state for 90 days; he must serve 25 hours community service; and he had to issue a public safety announcement. 

 

As I wrote in my post yesterday about this situation, the consequences for JT were always going to be minimal and we should and did address his privilege as a wealthy white man in America and how there are a different set of outcomes available to him when he f-cks up. JT has been the beneficiary of this his entire career. And he is fortunate, so fortunate, on so many levels, especially in this instance, as his actions did not end up harming others. With that in mind, let’s get to the statement he made outside the courthouse today after closing his case. Because… I don’t hate it. And you know, if you’ve been visiting this site over the years, that I do not f-ck with Justin Timberlake, he’s never been my favourite, and I’ve never been predisposed to give him the benefit of the doubt. That said, this is bigger than him. 

 

According to TMZ, Justin “confessed to consuming alcoholic beverages before his arrest and driving impaired -- a total 180 from back in July when his lawyer claimed he wasn't intoxicated when cops pulled him over”. So he’s (finally) admitted to committing an irresponsible and dangerous act. And he goes on to talk about how he did not live up to his own standards. As usual where JT is concerned, it’s a lot of “I” statements, both inside the courtroom and outside the courtroom when he addressed the media. But on this occasion, I’m good with him being the main character, because he’s the main character who drove while impaired, this should not be about anyone else, and he should be the one eating all the attention for his choice. “This is a mistake I made” is what Justin told reporters and while there was a slight hint of his usual smugness, it was considerably dialed down. 

 

Translation: it’s about the most humbled we’ll ever see from Justin Timberlake, and this is indeed something. 

 

But the reason why I’m saying that this is bigger than Justin is because I’m thinking about what possible circumstances and recent events may have possibly factored into his decision. You’ll recall, his lawyer was initially wrong and strong when JT was first arrested. He claimed innocence, he blamed overzealous police, he implied that Justin would be exonerated. So… what changed? Is it because they just wanted to wrap this up with as little drama as possible and move on? 

When I was listening to Justin make his statement, my mind went to the Gaudreau family. Hockey star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew were killed two weeks ago by a drunk driver in New Jersey the day before their sister’s wedding. Their tragedy made international headlines. It was major news in North America for days – and for someone who was dealing with a drunk driving charge of his own, I can’t imagine JT wouldn’t have heard about it and wouldn’t have reflected on it. 

 

I would like to believe that this was a sobering moment for Justin Timberlake; he says he’s been reflecting on his choices, the power of his platform, and that he intends to learn and grow from this experience, starting with his remarks today following his sentencing. Even though the eventual outcomes of these two situations are different, there is a common denominator: drunk driving. Perhaps, for Justin, realising that he’s on the wrong side of connection with a person who killed two people was the moment of clarity that led to him doing better. And right now, better is better. That’s the hope we all have, not just for him but for everyone. Please, let’s all do our part to be better. Please do not drink and drive. Please let’s stop others from drinking and driving.