Et tu, Bieber?
Justin Bieber, the fresh-faced Canadian pop superstar and YouTube success story who raked in a reported $55 million last year, has been on quite the dickish streak of late, it seems.
Yes, the Biebs is only 19.
And yes, he is hounded incessantly by the cretinous Paparazzi, who bait the singer by hurling pejoratives at him every time the diminutive fella puts spaceman sneaker to pavement. The incident in early March where he threatened an aggressive London photographer, lunging at him and shouting, “I’ll fucking beat the fuck out of you,” seemed to be a wash given the snapper’s awful barbs; showing up several hours late for a high-priced arena show in London happens sometimes; strutting through airport security shirtless is a head-scratcher, but nothing major; and siccing his crazed Twitter acolytes on The Black Keys’ drummer was a pretty low blow.
But if there’s any truth to the latest accusations against Bieber, well, this joke just isn’t funny anymore.
At 9:08 a.m. Tuesday morning, deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department arrived at Bieber’s Calabasas home to investigate a neighbor’s allegations of threats and battery against the celebrity, sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore told the Los Angeles Times.
According to TMZ, the neighbor is Jeff Schwartz, a 47-year-old father of three and automobile mogul who has lived in the gated community for ten years. Schwartz claims that he went over to Bieber’s property to complain about the star driving “at speeds approaching 100 mph” in the neighborhood when the singer told the middle-aged man to, “Get the fuck out of here,” before spitting in his face and adding, “I’m gonna fucking kill you.” The site also claims that a nearby landscaper witnessed Bieber spit at the accuser, and that Bieber was so incensed he had to be restrained by his bodyguards.
“Mr. Bieber's people say that it did not happen,” said Whitmore. “Obviously, our detectives will determine what happened and take appropriate action.” The sheriff’s spokesman also said that there have been no arrests or citations made yet.
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office told TMZ that the county takes spitting crimes very seriously, since it’s both an aggressive, “disgusting act,” and that it poses potential health risks, while a criminal defense expert explained to E! News that if Bieber is indeed convicted of battery, he could face six months in jail and a $1,000 fine—although he’s more likely to have it reduced to community service and anger management.
Authorities declined to pursue criminal charges against Bieber when the singer was accused of slugging a Paparazzo in the fact last May, with the Los Angeles D.A.’s Office citing insufficient evidence, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“He's a punk,” Schwartz’s wife, Susie, told TMZ. “He thinks he's invincible. He can't continue to have a bunch of enablers around him.”
She added, “Spitting on someone is unacceptable. He can't do this to people.”