Justin Bieber couldn’t get on the guest list for his favourite 1Oak nightclub in New York this past weekend, but he has reportedly made the cut on a Homeland Security watch list.
The 19-year-old singer isn’t yet convicted of the two criminal charges he received within a week of each other. And a third investigation in which he is a suspect has yet to become a charge.
But the effect of the double charges and waiting triple threat, is Bieber will now be flagged up by US Customs. This will either restrict or slow his freedom of movement in and out of the country, and may do so to at other international borders.
When Bieber and his crew of around 13 flew into New Jersey’s Teterboro airport Friday for a weekend of Super Bowl parties, they were reportedly delayed for about five hours while US Customs and Border Protection officials and drug-sniffing dogs swept his private plane over suspicions of marijuana use.
Bieber was reportedly searched then questioned by officials before he and his group were finally allowed to re-enter the US.
CNN reports not only were no drugs found.
A later report said empty bags that appeared to have once contained marijuana were found.
But it doesn’t matter. According to the Associated Press , TMZ , and legal experts, Bieber’s travel will be indefinitely subjected to flagging and all the inconveniencing that comes with it, because of his two criminal charges.
In January 23, just after 4 am, a Miami Beach police stopped and arrested Bieber and his friend, R&B singer Khalil Sharieff during what they described as an illegal street drag race.
A subsequent preliminary toxicology test revealed drugs present that are found in Xanax and marijuana.
Currently out on a $2,500 bond, Bieber has been charged with driving under the influence, resisting arrest without violence, and driving with an expired license.
On the same day a lawyer filed a not guilty plea ahead of an arraignment for the DUI and other charges later this month, the teen star turned himself in at a Toronto police station to be charged with assault in connection to an alleged attack on a Toronto limousine driver in December.
A lawyer for the Canadian said he is innocent of the assault in a later statement.
In addition, Bieber remains under investigation in house-egging , felony vandalism case in Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, March is looking like the month to watch.
Miami prosecutors are said to be confident Bieber has a case to answer, while a Miami-Dade County judge has set a trial date for the three misdemeanors for March 3.
Bieber will appear in a Toronto court to fight the assault charge on March 10.
Presently, these cases have yet to show their hand. But if a conviction arises in just one of these cases, experts say it could domino into other cases and erode the benefit of the doubt judges often give first time offenders.
Stanley L. Friedman, a former federal prosecutor who now practices criminal defence in Los Angeles told the Associated Press that if Bieber is convicted it could impact how judges view and sentence the teen.
“I think the legal system is much more likely to treat him harshly as somebody who needs to be taught a lesson,” Freidman added. “Now he’s become a national poster child for being a bad boy.”
Somewhat presciently – given Teterboro – Andrew Flier, a criminal defence attorney told AP immigration could be the biggest headache for Bieber is convicted in either or both cases, resulting in increased scrutiny when traveling and problems as an non-citizen
Stan Goldman, a criminal law professor at Loyola Law School, L.A. says prosecutors in Miami, Los Angeles, and Florida, may consider verdicts in other cases and judge more harshly if they see convictions in others
If Bieber is handed probation or possibly rehab order, he may find severe restrictions on his travel plus any lapses on probation will haul him back on front of a judge.
David S. Kestenbaum, an attorney representing a photog charged with driving recklessly to obtain snaps of Bieber, says the past year has exposed “credibility” issues in the singer’s “character,” and thinks the baggage he comes with will enter the courtroom.
All of the experts said deportation is unlikely but add Bieber will be robustly searched for narcotics at customs, and has basically kissed goodbye to breezing through customs in US and possibly everywhere — for the foreseeable.