Gayle King has fiercely defended Justin Timberlake in the wake of his DWI arrest – with the CBS news anchor insisting he simply made a ‘mistake.’
The Sexy Back singer, 43, was pulled over by cops in the early hours of Tuesday morning after he ran a stop sign and veered out of his lane while behind the wheel of his BMW X7.
After refusing a breathalyzer, Justin was slapped with a one year driving ban in New York. His mugshot has since gone viral.
Gayle, 69, discussed Justin’s run in with the law on Wednesday’s CBS Mornings show alongside her co-hosts Tony Dokoupil, 43, and Nate Burleson, 42,hailing him a ‘really great guy.’
‘But Justin Timberlake is a really, really great guy,’ she said after the bulletin.
Gayle King fiercely defended Justin Timberlake in the wake of his DWI arrest – with the CBS news anchor insisting he simply made a ‘mistake’
Justin, 43, was arrested for driving while intoxicated after he failed to maintain his lane and pause at a stop sign, police said
‘Listen, this is clearly a mistake. I bet nobody knows it more than he does.’
Defending his character, she continued: ‘He’s not an irresponsible person. He’s not reckless, careless.
‘Clearly this is not a good thing. He knows that. I love when they stopped Billy Joel and he said, ‘you know, wait, not everybody judge at this particular time’.’
Gayle added: ‘Listen, driving drunk, there’s never any excuse ever, ever.’
Despite her comments, it appears that Gayle has never interviewed Justin over the course of her career.
It is not clear if Gayle and Justin are close friends, but the presenter has previously expressed her love for his music, telling Oprah.com she was ‘crazy’ about him.
‘I love a man who loves his mama which is one of the many reasons I’m crazy about Justin Timberlake,’ she told the site in 2012. ‘When I recently chatted with the singer and actor… it was so special to hear him adoringly describe his mom, Lynn, as a regular Southern steel magnolia.
‘He says she’s the reason he’s attracted to women who are confident and grounded. Go, Mom!’
The singer reportedly claimed to the arresting officers that he’d had ‘just one martini’ after he was pulled over in Sag Harbor in the early hours of Tuesday morning
Defending his character, Gayle said of Justin: ‘He’s not an irresponsible person. He’s not reckless, careless.’
Back in March she told the World According to Gayle video series that she was looking forward to his new album.
Justin had been drinking with friends at the American Hotel bar in Sag Harbor when he decided to get behind the wheel of his car and attempt to drive off shortly after midnight.
He was pulled over and refused a breath test, telling the cops: ‘No, I’m not doing a chemical test. I refuse! I refuse!’
According to reports, he also claimed to the arresting officers that he had consumed ‘just one martini.’
Police described Justin as having ‘bloodshot and glassy’ eyes, smelling strongly of alcohol, having slowed speech and being unable to maintain his attention.
In exclusive pictures obtained by DailyMail.com, he appeared shell-shocked as he was led across the bridge from Sag Harbor police headquarters to the villages Justice Court on Tuesday morning.
Justin pleaded not guilty at a brief arraignment on one count of DWI, as well as running a stop sign and failing to stay in his lane.
Gayle made the comments as she discussed Justin’s run in with the law on Wednesday’s CBS Mornings alongside her co-hosts Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson (pictured)
Justin, pictured during the iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles in April, is currently on the road across America for his Forget Tomorrow tour
He was banned from driving for one year in New York and released without bail, emerging from court wearing a baseball cap. He is next in court on July 26.
Justin is currently on the road in America for the first leg of his world tour, Forget Tomorrow, with his next appearance in Chicago on June 21.
He has a break for a few weeks from July 9 until he kicks off the European leg in Krakow, Poland on July 29.
Shows in Germany, Belgium, England, The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and France takes the tour to its second leg before another break in September.
Insiders told DailyMail.com the singer has turned up to rehearsals ‘smelling of alcohol’ more than once.
The tour is in support of his sixth solo album Everything I Thought It Was, which was released in March to mixed reviews.
It was his first solo album in six years, following his 2018 album Man of the Woods.
