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DUI Do: 98 Degrees Dude Busted
05/03/2006 6:29 PM, E! Online
The one guy in 98 Degrees whose career has completely cooled off
is now making the wrong kind of news.
Jeff Timmons, aka
the one without a famous ex-wife, TV dance championship or long-shot
mayoral campaign, was arrested on charges of drunken driving and driving
without a valid license in Florida on Apr. 23, the Brevard County
Sheriff's Office confirmed Wednesday.
In a statement,
Timmons' attorney, Donald W. Wruck III, described the "unfortunate
incident" as "the result of a misunderstanding."
The
33-year-old former boy-bander was pulled over in Cape Canaveral when
sheriff's deputies spotted him speeding after leaving a, um, celebrity
softball game.
According to the police report, Timmons
was pulled over at 2:25 a.m., after his white Mercedes was clocked going
60 mph in a 45-mph zone. Timmons allegedly sped toward, then erratically
passed, the marked patrol car.
The "I Do" singer
purportedly told the officers that he was from California and had "a
lot" to drink that night, before rescinding the claim and saying he'd
really "only had two beers."
According to the police
report, the singer had "very glassy" eyes and was accompanied in the
vehicle by two other men, both of whom were "very intoxicated," and one
of whom was later identified as Mitch English, the host of the
syndicated TV show The Daily Buzz, who was also the owner of the
car. English reportedly told cops he wasn't driving because he was "down
for the count."
Nick Lachey's former band mate wasn't
carrying his license at the time of his arrest--not that it would have
mattered much. Timmons' license had not only expired in 2005, but it
also had several suspensions against it, police said.
The former pop star was then asked to perform a videotaped field
sobriety test, which he allegedly refused on the grounds that he wanted
his lawyer present. One of the patrolmen read the singer the state's
"implied consent" law, and when Timmons again refused to participate in
the tasks, he was placed under arrest.
But not before a
last ditch, don't-you-know-who-I-am, effort.
According
to the arrest report, Timmons asked the officers if they "knew Nick
Lachey or the group 98 Degrees. He also asked if I watched The Daily
Buzz on TV. I replied 'no.'"
Timmons was arrested
and held on $500 bond, which he posted later that day. The case has
since been transferred to the Florida State Attorney's Office.
"Jeff takes this matter seriously, however is unhappy at various
statements made to the media that do not reflect actual events," Wruck
said in his statement. "We believe the incident is the result of a
misunderstanding and that Jeff will ultimately be cleared of all
charges."
Wruck says that Timmons is currently back in Los
Angeles, where he is working on his second solo album, scheduled for
release this summer.
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