After the news on Wednesday that Bruce Springsteen was arrested in New Jersey on suspicion of drunk driving last November, the uproar quickly ensued: fans were perplexed that such a thing would happen to the singer – who is not an abstainer, but never was known as a heavy drinker – and Jeep quickly removed the recent Super Bowl ad starring Springsteen from his YouTube page, stating that “drinking and driving can never be forgiven”.
However, unconfirmed details surfaced on Wednesday night that at least lessened the seriousness of the crime. Asbury Park Press (a town near Springsteen’s home that used to appear in Springsteen’s songs) cited a police report saying the singer’s blood alcohol level was 0.02 – far below the legal limit of 0.08 – and the New York Post quoted a “source close to Springsteen” said the 71-year-old singer accepted a single shot of tequila offered by a fan. Springsteen was riding a motorcycle in the Gateway National Recreation Area, a federal park in Sandy Hook, NJ, and stopped to take pictures with fans. He then accepted the shot offered by one of them, in the sight of police officers.
“Bruce stopped, took the pictures, then a fan offered him a drink, which he drank, sitting on his bicycle, which was still,” the source said, according to the report. “The park police saw what happened and immediately pulled Springsteen out as he walked away.
Springsteen and National Park Service representatives did not immediately respond to the Varietyrequests for comment.
While the new details, if true, make the incident seem less scandalous, it is impossible to excuse driving under the influence in any context, as reflected in the Jeep statement after removing Springsteen’s YouTube ad.
“It would be inappropriate to comment on the details of a subject that we only read about and cannot verify,” said Jeep in a statement to Variety. “But it is also true that we pause our Big Game commercial until the real facts can be established. His message of community and unity is as relevant as ever. Just like the message that drinking and driving can never be forgiven. “
No court date had been set for the matter at the time of publication of this article.