Former Dave Matthews Band Member Boyd Tinsley Arrested for DUI

Boyd Tinsley, a violist of Dave Matthews Band from 1992 to 2018, has been arrested for a DUI in Rio, Virginia, according to a video first posted by TMZ and confirmed by Billboard.

According to a statement shared to Billboard by the Albemarle County Police Department: “On Monday, June 24, at approximately 5:54 pm, the Albemarle County Police Department responded to a two-vehicle crash that had occurred in the area of Seminole Trail (U.S. 29) and Woodbrook Drive. There were no reported injuries as a result of the crash. Based on the result of the investigation, responding officers took one adult male into custody on suspicion of DUI. He was transported to Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail.”

This is not Tinsley’s first legal trouble of the year. In February, Tinsley was hit with a new lawsuit alleging that the musician breached the terms of a sexual harassment lawsuit that was settled in 2019. Boyd was sued in May 2018 by trumpeter James Frost-Winn of making frequent sexual comments to him over the course of their professional relationship as a member of the band Crystal Garden, which Boyd formed, produced and managed for a documentary project indented to chronicle the group’s rise to fame. 

The two parties agreed to a $837,000 settlement payment to Frost-Winn in 2019, but lawyers for Frost-Winn claim that Tinsley breached a “mutual non-disparagement” clause on February 22, 2022 in a series of posts on social media, which goes against the clause that prevented either party from discussing the matter publicly.

The violinist appeared on every Dave Matthews Band album from 1994’s Under the Table and Dreaming through 2018’s Come Tomorrow. In February 2018, Tinsley announced he was leaving the band shortly before the sexual harassment accusations became public, writing in a statement, “I need to take a break from the band & touring 2 focus on my family & my health 4 a while. I will miss you guys & my brothers in the band but I’m somewhat worn out & need 2 spend more time with my family & 2 bring more balance to my life.”

Rania Aniftos

Billboard