When Bruce Springsteen was arrested in November on suspicion of drunk driving in a national park in New Jersey, an official said the rock icon had failed two tests of sobriety and admitted drinking two shots of tequila.
These details are described in a probable cause statement filed in federal court that sheds new light on Springsteen’s arrest on November 14 in the 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 a shot of tequila before getting on his motorcycle and starting the engine. The officer told Springsteen that alcohol was prohibited on Sandy Hook, and then noticed that a 750 ml bottle of Patron was empty, the statement said. It is not clear whether the bottle was full when he started drinking.
Springsteen said he had taken two shots of tequila in the past 20 minutes and planned to drive out of the park, the officer said.
“Springsteen smelled strongly of alcohol coming out of him and had glassy eyes,” said the officer.
He indicated four out of six lanes for poisoning in an initial test and five out of eight in the walk and turn test, according to the statement.
The officer said Springsteen swayed back and forth while the officer examined his eyes and took 45 steps during the walk test, instead of the 18 he was supposed to take.
Springsteen refused to provide a sample in the preliminary breath test, the statement said. When he took one, Springsteen blew up a 0.02, a quarter of the legal limit in New Jersey, according to The New York Times, citing two people close to Springsteen. It is not clear when he took the test.
Asbury Park Press reported Springsteen’s blood alcohol level for the first time. The newspaper also said that fans offered him tequila after he took pictures with them.
Springsteen faces charges of drunk driving, reckless driving and drinking alcohol in an enclosed area in connection with the incident, according to National Park Service spokeswoman Brenda Ling.
Ling said Springsteen, famous for being a New Jersey native, was cooperative throughout the process.
News of the arrest came days after Springsteen’s first Super Bowl commercial debuted. In the two-minute wave for Jeep, Springsteen says the country will see the unit again and says “there is hope on the road ahead.”
A Jeep spokesman said the Super Bowl commercial was put on hold.
Fans have long praised Springsteen, 71, for his healthy lifestyle.
In his 2016 autobiography, “Born to Run,” Springsteen said he avoided drugs and didn’t try alcohol until he was 22, partly because he saw how drinking affected his father.
