Toronto arrest won’t keep Justin Bieber from returning, lawyer says

An attorney for Justin Bieber said the assault charge the pop star is facing in Canada will not keep him from returning to the U.S., where his client faces a number of other charges in Florida.

The Canadian-born 19-year-old turned himself in to Toronto police Wednesday in response to an assault charge stemming from a Dec. 29 incident involving a limo driver. The development came just weeks after he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, resisting arrest and driving with an expired license after allegedly speeding in a yellow Lamborghini in Miami Beach.

Bieber’s arrival in Toronto comes as a petition asking that he be deported back to Canada obtained the 100,000 signatures needed to be sent to the White House for consideration.

But the singer’s attorney, Howard Weitzman, said in a statement to The Times that the charge Bieber faces in Canada “is the equivalent of a misdemeanor in the United States,” which would not keep him out of the country.

He went to say Bieber was innocent but declined to comment on the specifics of the case.

“As the matter is now before the court, it would be inappropriate to address the specifics of either the allegation or of our defense at this time,” Weitzman said.

Bieber is scheduled to be arraigned on the Miami Beach DUI case on Valentine’s Day, and remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department amid accusations that he egged his neighbor’s house in Calabasas, causing $20,000 in damage.

Prosecutors have asked that detectives investigate the case further before deciding on whether to file charges.

richard.winton@latimes.com

Twitter: @LAcrimes