Rascal Flatts guitarist Joe Don Rooney was arrested Thursday morning just outside Nashville and charged with driving under the influence. Williamson County Sheriff’s Department confirmed the arrest to Rolling Stone.
Rooney, who lives in Nashville, was involved in a car accident shortly after 4 a.m. on Thursday morning, when his vehicle collided with a tree on Hillsboro Road. A Williamson County deputy responded to the scene.
Rooney was booked into Williamson County Jail Thursday morning and released the same day on a $2,500 bond. A rep for Rascal Flatts declined comment.
Williamson County Sheriff’s Department
With his Rascal Flatts bandmates Gary LeVox and Jay DeMarcus, Rooney enjoyed a two-decade-long string of major successes beginning in 2000. The trio’s peak commercial period between 2000 and 2010 includes the multi-platinum albums Feels Like Today and Me and My Gang, as well as a succession of country chart hits like “Mayberry,” “What Hurts the Most,” “Bless the Broken Road,” and “Here Comes Goodbye.” They claimed the CMA Vocal Group of the Year prize every year between 2003 and 2008.
In 2020, the group put out the album How They Remember You and announced plans for a farewell tour that doubled as a retirement and 20th anniversary celebration. Dates were set to begin in June, but were ultimately canceled early that spring due to the pandemic.