DWI charges dropped against Bruce Springsteen, who pleads guilty to just drinking in the park

[pnwmom]

Source: CNN

CNN)Bruce Springsteen pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges he imbibed alcohol at New Jersey's Sandy Hook National Recreation Area, despite knowing it was prohibited.

"I had two small shots of Tequila," Springsteen said in a virtual appearance before New Jersey Federal Court.

The plea came after federal prosecutors agreed to drop charges that Springsteen was operating a vehicle under the influence and driving recklessly, charges Assistant US Attorney Adam Baker said the government would not be able to prove.

"The evidence we reviewed indicates that after the defendant's arrest, he submitted to a breath test at the ranger station, and his BAC reading was .02, which as the court is aware is well under the legal limit of .08," Baker said.


Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/24/entertainment/bruce-springsteen-charges-plead/index.html

---

It sounds like the Judge was a bigger fan than the cop.

[efhmc]

1. That whole thing was weird.

[ancianita]

33. imo, the whole thing was trumpcult harassment, an attempt to own his lib fans and send

the fascist 'we're watching you' warning to the liberal celebrity world

[Paladin]

2. Good. Nobody should get busted for a .02 reading. (nt)

[COL Mustard]

5. Can We Get His Jeep Commercial Back Again?

That's the important thing here!

[stopdiggin]

15. always thought that was a bit strange

1) either corporate America is getting way more sensitive towards impropriety in general (while a portion of their consumer base is quite obviously not)
or 2) pressure was applied to corporate through outside sources that we're unaware of (political actions, blue line stuff?)

either way -- I got a feeling he'll be just fine. and from all accounts handled this situation beautifully -- from his first interaction with LE -- to the media -- on through to a legal resolution. kudos.

[dogknob]

9. Unless they're an outspoken, influential lib and...

...you're a T***p-loving cop looking for an easy celebrity collar.

[OneCrazyDiamond]

13. Under aged drinkers?

[dsc]

23. they should be busted for the drinking

not as DUI.

[samsingh]

3. good

[madaboutharry]

4. "I had two small shots of Tequila."

The title of Springsteen's next song. Or maybe " Just drinking in the park."

Yeah, it was weird.

[pnwmom]

7. And the article said the law against drinking there was enacted only 2 years ago.

I wonder how well it was posted.

[LudwigPastorius]

51. One Step Up (and Two Shots Back)

[2golddogs]

6. Song

I read “just drinking in the park” in the cadence of “just dancing in the dark.” 😄

[paranoid floyd]

14. Good one. 👍🏻

[stopdiggin]

8. kinda' wondering. were the other people

(that were handing OUT the shots) ticketed for drinking in the park? Or just Springsteen?

[twin_ghost]

10. Finally! The nightmare of Springstein drinking in a US park is over.

[whathehell]

11. Good..

Love the Boss..Bring back that Jeep commercial.

[Rocknation]

12. It doesn't excuse his not informing Jeep.

rocktivity

[stopdiggin]

17. of a drinking in the park charge?

maybe there was implied sarcasm. Not sure I would have rushed off to tell my boss about a 0.02. My BIL maybe ....

[Rocknation]

19. I was referring to the embarrasment and ridicule the Super Bowl commerical caused Jeep

Last edited Mon Nov 7, 2022, 03:10 PM - Edit history (1)

Indeed, if Bruce had informed them, Jeep could have joined him in publicly demanding how an .02 BAC merits a DWI charge!


Rocknation

[ForgoTheConsequence]

20. No kidding.

It wouldn't even occur to me to bring this up. I'd like to thank this cop for wasting everyone's time.

[pnwmom]

44. How do we know he didn't? Maybe they had already spent a lot of money making the commercial

and hoped his charge would be quietly dropped.

[Rocknation]

48. Jeep released this statement on Feb 10

(MSM.com): “It would be inappropriate for us to comment on the details of a matter we have only read about and we cannot substantiate,” a spokesperson for Jeep said... “But it’s also right that we pause our Big Game commercial until the actual facts can be established. Its message of community and unity is as relevant as ever. As is the message that drinking and driving can never be condoned.”

However:

The Detroit News (3/24/21): Jeep once again will promote its Super Bowl LV ad featuring Bruce Springsteen on its YouTube channel and website after prosecutors dropped drunken driving and reckless driving charges against the singer-songwriter.

"As we stated previously, we paused the commercial until the facts were established," a Jeep representative said in a statement. "Now, that the matter has been resolved, we are unpausing the film."

Rocknation

[pnwmom]

49. So? Are you telling us that we should automatically believe the corporation? nt

[Archae]

16. No wonder he mumbled constantly in his songs.

Or else bellowed like a wounded water buffalo.

Tequila will do that!

[twodogsbarking]

18. Everyone has a Tequila story

some don't end in arrest.

[Archae]

21. One tequila, two tequila...

Three tequila, floor.

[speak easy]

22. Four tequilas pack a punch

and so do many more

[VWolf]

28. Still my favorite :)

[COL Mustard]

25. I Heard It A Little Differently

One martini, two martini, three martini, floor.

Or

One martini, two martinis, three at the most...after four martinis I am under the host. (I think it's attributed to Dorothy Parker.)

[Archae]

26. Hee hee!

The funniest part is, I'm currently 61 years old, but only got drunk once, on my 18th birthday.

Peppermint schnapps.

Next day I decided never to do that again.

[CaptainTruth]

31. Oh boy, I remember when it was safe to cross into Juarez for dinner & drinks.

Well, I remember most of it.

I was always glad we had a driver to get us back to the hotel.

The joys of business trips...

[George II]

24. I was out for an hour and heard the story on the radio three or four times. Seems like the cop...

...went overboard and the judge saw it.

The funny thing is that the judge asked him how soon he could pay the ~$540, he said he'd pay it right away.

If he blew .02 and the limit is .08, why did he get charged in the first place.

Now, maybe we should all urge Matt Gaetz to move to New Jersey?

[pnwmom]

29. The Federal govt. had a new (passed 2 years ago) law banning alcohol consumption in the park.

So Springsteen did break that law.

[Rocknation]

27. Shades of Jussie Smollett -- if the charge was bogus, why did they offer a plea deal?

Last edited Sat Mar 13, 2021, 08:28 AM - Edit history (1)

The plea came after federal prosecutors agreed to drop (the) charges...

"His BAC reading was .02, which, as the Court is aware, is well under the legal limit of .08..." (The) Assistant US Attorney...said the government would not be able to prove...(the charge)...

The prosecutors agreed with WHO? A DWI charge so obviously lacking in legal merit never should have gotten out of the police station, never mind into the DA's office. And, of course, everyone involved in filing the charge (why DIDN'T they "settle" for DUI?) needs to be re-trained if not investigated.

(for the Jussie Smollett-impaired)


Rocknation

[CaptainTruth]

32. Note the charge was "driving while under the influence"...

...not "driving while intoxicated."

Most states' DWI/DUI laws are written to refer to "under the influence." That doesn't necessarily mean "intoxicated." At 0.02 you are in fact under the influence of alcohol but you're not legally considered "intoxicated" until you hit 0.08. So yes, he was "under the influence" but his blood alcohol level was so low it would be difficult to make a court case that his abilities were significantly impaired, so it would make sense to drop that charge as part of a deal.

The whole "under the influence" thing has always made me wonder, if I was driving along & I looked over to read a billboard advertising Jack Daniels whiskey, & got in an accident because my eyes weren't on the road, could someone make the case that I had the accident because I was "under the influence" of alcohol at the time?

[Rocknation]

43. Only if your car had ended up UNDER the Jack Daniels sign LOL

Last edited Wed Feb 24, 2021, 07:13 PM - Edit history (4)

But if the initial charge had been DUI, everyone could have come out of this smelling better.


Rocknation

[malthaussen]

30. Couple of years ago, Dylan was walking in one of the coast cities of Jersey...

... just grooving on the architecture. Woman resident decided he looked suspicious and called the cops.
They didn't recognize him. (Sic transit gloria mundi)
He wasn't carrying ID, so they put him in the cruiser and took him back to his hotel so he could prove who he was.
Moral of the story: a freeborn American citizen can't even walk the streets of this fair nation without some asshole calling the cops. Guess he was "lucky" they didn't gun him down right there.

-- Mal

[Politicub]

34. Privilege must be nice.

[pnwmom]

35. His "privilege" might have been what got him arrested. It sounds like the cop

might have had something against a famous Democrat who campaigned against Trump.

[Politicub]

36. Okay. That must have been it.

[LanternWaste]

41. Nuance and context a bit difficult today, eh?

[Politicub]

45. If you say so.

[ZonkerHarris]

39. His privilege got him in trouble and I can prove it. He did two shots of tequila with fans

He was arrested and the fans were not.
None of them were even stopped.
The state cops, which in NJ are total fucking assholes, wanted a celebrity trophy.

[Cha]

52. TeamPooka, Thanks! Sorry I

mean ZonkerHarris

[DENVERPOPS]

42. Ya Think?

a .02 ????????? vs Limbaugh caught with a Thousand Oxycodone and he got zip...........

[BradAllison]

53. Cops never got over the 41 shots thing. (n/m)

[Steelrolled]

38. Just Leave Bruce Alone!

[marble falls]

40. Its just so hard to care one way or another about this, though the concert I saw him at in '74 ...

... was awesome.

[ewagner]

46. "...drinkin in the park...

and "dancin in the dark"

[LiberalLovinLug]

47. Why would he even be charged with DWI when he was only .02?

[pnwmom]

50. A Trumper cop, is my guess. n/t