When Bruce Springsteen was arrested in November on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol in a national park in New Jersey, an officer said the rock icon failed two sobriety tests and admitted drinking two shots of tequila has.
These details are set out in a probable cause statement filed in federal court that sheds new light on Springsteen’s arrest on Nov. 14 at Gateway National Recreation Area, also known as Sandy Hook.
Springsteen and his lawyers did not comment on the incident.
According to the statement, the officer saw Springsteen take one shot of tequila before getting on his motorcycle and turning on the engine. The officer told Springsteen that alcohol was banned at Sandy Hook, and then noticed that a 750 ml Patron bottle was empty, the statement read. It is unclear how full the bottle was when he started drinking from it.
Springsteen said he had taken two shots of tequila in the past twenty minutes and was planning to drive out of the park, the officer reported.
“Springsteen smelled strongly of alcohol coming from his person and had glassy eyes,” the officer said.
According to the statement, he indicated four out of six clues for drunkenness in an initial test and five out of eight in the walk-and-turn test.
According to the officer, Springsteen swung back and forth while the officer checked his eyes and took 45 steps during the walk test instead of the 18 he was told to take.
Springsteen refused to give a sample in the preliminary breath test, the statement said. By the time he took one, Springsteen had blown a .02, a quarter of the legal limit, according to The New York Times, referring to two people near Springsteen. It is not clear when he took the test.
The Asbury Park Press first reported that Springsteen’s blood alcohol level was. The newspaper also said that fans offered him the tequila after he took pictures with them.
According to Brenda Ling, spokeswoman for the National Park Service, Springsteen is facing charges of driving while intoxicated, driving recklessly and driving under the influence of alcohol in a closed environment in connection with the incident.
Ling said Springsteen, a well-known figure in New Jersey, was continuously cooperating.
The news of the arrest comes days after the debut of Springsteen’s first Super Bowl ad. In the two-minute series for Jeep, Springsteen says the country will see unity again and says ‘there is hope on the road ahead.’
A spokesman for the Jeep brand said the Super Bowl ad was interrupted.
Fans have long praised Springsteen (71) for his healthy lifestyle.
In his 2016 autobiography “Born to Run,” Springsteen said he avoided drugs and only tried alcohol at age 22, in part because he saw alcohol affect his father.
