Bruce Springsteen took 45 steps instead of the requested 18 when he was arrested for DWI, a New Jersey police report says, refused a breath test and ‘strongly smelt of alcohol’.
The singer’s blood alcohol level was, however, reportedly well within the legal limit.
The Boss, 71, was in the Gateway National Recreation Area on Sandy Hook on November 14 when he was arrested and charged for driving while intoxicated, reckless driving and drinking in a closed area.
The incident reportedly unfolded after the Thunder Road singer pulled over on his motorbike to take a picture with fans and accepted a tequila shot from one of them in full view of watching police.
Newly-released police documents, obtained by The Huffington Post, show that the singer, born in Long Branch, New Jersey, failed several sobriety tests.
Bruce Springsteen (above in 2016) refused a breath test and ‘strongly smelt of alcohol’ when he was arrested in November for DWI while riding his motorbike, a New Jersey police report says
Statements of probable cause obtained by Fox News have now revealed that Springsteen allegedly refused to take a preliminary breath test when first approached by a park ranger on site.
‘Springsteen refused to take a preliminary breath test (PBT), despite signs of intoxication namely after testing his gaze and walk and turn tests,’ park ranger R. L. Hayes wrote in the report.
Hayes further claimed that the rock icon ‘smelt strongly of alcohol’, had ‘glassy eyes’, and was ‘visibly swaying’ back and forth.
Springsteen also allegedly admitted that he’d consumed ‘two shots of tequila in the last 20 minutes’, the park ranger claimed.
His blood alcohol level was later tested by police and found to be 0.02 – a quarter of New Jersey’s legal limit of 0.08, according to the Asbury Park Press. However it’s currently unclear how long after his initial interaction with Hayes that Springsteen was tested.
According to the report, the arrest took place near the lighthouse (shown above) in the Gateway National Recreation Area on Sandy Hook back on November 14, 2020
In a statement to CNN, a source said to be close to Springsteen called into question the ‘seriousness’ of the star’s arrest.
‘When this is all resolved, I think, people are gonna have some serious doubts about the seriousness of this, especially when the actual details of this are revealed, including the blood alcohol level,’ the anonymous source told the network.
‘I don’t know why they stopped him,’ they continued. ‘I mean technically you’re not allowed to drink in a state park and I don’t know, maybe, if a policeman sees somebody drinking and doesn’t give them a ticket, they lose their job.
‘Any kind of alcohol related driving thing is serious,’ the source added.
In his report, Hayes wrote that he had witnessed Springsteen ‘consume a shot of Patron tequila’ before getting on his motorcycle to ‘start the engine’.
Hayes said he then informed the New Jersey-native that drinking inside Gateway National Recreation Area is ‘prohibited’.
‘The Patron bottle that the shot was poured out of was completely empty (750ml),’ the ranger continued, as reported by Fox. ‘I asked Springsteen if he was leaving and he confirmed that he was going to drive out of the park.’
The ranger also said he ‘observed four out of six clues on the horizontal gaze nystagmus test.’
‘[Springsteen] was visibly swaying back and forth while I observed his eyes,’ Hayes wrote.
‘I observed five out of eight clues on the walk and turn test. Springsteen took 45 total steps during the walk and turn instead of the instructed 19. [He] refused to provide a sample on the preliminary breath test.’
According to Hayes’ report, Springsteen was detained near the lighthouse in the park.
Because the arrest took place on federal land, the case will be handled by the US Attorney’s Office in Newark and heard in a federal court.
News of Springsteen’s arrest comes days after 96.4million viewers watched him star in an ad for Jeep during Sunday’s Super Bowl (pictured)
The rocker is expected to appear in a virtual court by the end of the month.
A DWI in a national park is a misdemeanor federal offense, carrying a maximum sentence of six months in jail and fines of up to $5,000. Probation can also be up to five years, according to Freeburg Law.
Alcohol has been banned entirely from Gateway National Recreation Area since 2019, and is prohibited from being brought onto its beaches, parking lots, park grounds, picnic areas and boating docks.
Officials with the National Park Service (NPS) first confirmed Springsteen’s arrest to DailyMail.com on Wednesday.
He was said to be ‘cooperative throughout the process’, NPS spokesperson Brenda Ling said.
According to TMZ, this is Springsteen’s first known arrest for DWI.
Drinking at Gateway National Recreation Area in Sandy Hook, New Jersey (seen above) is strictly prohibited, according to its website
A DWI in a national park is a misdemeanor federal offense, carrying a maximum sentence of six months in jail and fines of up to $5,000. Probation can also be up to five years, according to Freeburg Law (pictured above is a map of the Sandy Hook peninsula)
Springsteen, who previously owned a home in Rumson, a few towns from Sandy Hook, has filmed several music videos and other projects at the federal park.
For the cover of his 1987 album Tunnel of Love, Springsteen used the park’s beach as his backdrop. Gateway was also the setting for video of his solo track ‘Brilliant Disguise’, and featured in his 2014 short film, Hunter of Invisible Game.
Springsteen, who previously owned a home in Rumson, a few towns from Sandy Hook, has filmed several music videos and other projects at the federal park, including the cover of 1987’s Tunnel of Love
It was not immediately clear why the Born in the USA singer’s arrest took almost three months to come to light but it did so just days after 96.4million viewers watched Springsteen star in an ad for Jeep during Sunday’s Super Bowl.
The much-hyped ad was the first time the rock veteran has appeared in a Super Bowl commercial. In the two-minute clip, titled The Middle, Springsteen urged unity in America.
‘It’s no secret the middle has been a hard place to get to lately, between red and blue, servant and citizen, freedom and fear,’ Springsteen intones, adding ‘we need the middle.’
‘Fear has never been the best of who we are,’ the Boss continues. ‘We just have to remember the very soil we stand on is common ground. So we can get there. We can make it to the mountaintop, through the desert . . . and we will cross this divide.’
The ad then ends with a dedication: ‘To the ReUnited States of America.’
The company has ‘paused’ the ad, meaning it now reads ‘Video unavailable’ ‘This video is private’ on YouTube.
It was not immediately clear why the Born in the USA singer’s arrest took almost three months to come to light but it did so just days after 96.4million viewers watched Springsteen star in an ad for Jeep during Sunday’s Super Bowl. Pictured: Springsteen chugs back a fan’s half finished beer during a concert in Philadelphia, in 2012
The video has also been removed from Jeep’s Twitter but is still visible on Springsteen’s Instagram account.
In a statement to DailyMail.com, Jeep said: it ‘would be inappropriate for us to comment on the details of a matter we have only read about and we cannot substantiate.’
‘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.’
It is unclear whether Jeep were aware of Springsteen’s legal woes at the time of production.
However, CNN’s Springsteen source appeared to suggest Jeep’s actions to pull the ad were premature, telling the network: ‘I just hope Jeep ends up looking bad in the end.’
Springsteen has famously shunned appearances in commercials over the course of his decades-long career.
However, his longtime manager, Jon Landau, revealed the decision for him to take part in Jeep’s ad was entirely ‘spontaneous’ and came after years of the company courting him.
Landau told Rolling Stone the hit-maker also had a heavy hand in the commercial’s artistic direction, explaining its script was ‘substantially revised by Springsteen’, and that he also oversaw the ad’s final edit.
‘He controlled every second of what you see and hear, and that’s why it feels so personal,’ Landau said.
Earlier this month, Springsteen also performed at President Joe Biden’s inauguration, giving a rendition of ‘Land of Hope and Dreams’ at the Lincoln Memorial
Jeep has not disclosed what fee Springsteen was paid for his appearance in the ad, nor has the company shared how much the commercial cost to make.
However, it’s likely to have cost tens of millions of dollars, with a 30-second spot of airtime during this year’s Super Bowl costing around $5.5million. At that price, Jeep’s 120-second add would have cost around $22million.
Earlier this month, Springsteen also performed at President Joe Biden’s inauguration, giving a rendition of ‘Land of Hope and Dreams’ at the Lincoln Memorial.
Springsteen opened the evening’s Celebrating America event, which was hosted by Tom Hanks.
The Dancing in the Dark singer lives in New Jersey – close to where he grew up – with his wife, Patti Scialfa, whom he married in 1991.
Springsteen’s reps have not yet returned a DailyMail.com request for comment on his arrest.