Overview
- A witness reported that a brown convertible struck an unoccupied, legally parked car in Yountville and briefly stopped before leaving, an incident deputies say occurred Friday afternoon.
- Deputies later found the convertible partially blocking a nearby road, identified the 86-year-old driver as Paul Pelosi, and said his car had front-right damage consistent with the earlier impact.
- Pelosi told investigators he knew he hit something but did not know what it was and drove until his car became disabled, and a preliminary breath test showed 0.00 alcohol so DUI was ruled out.
- He was not arrested at the scene; the Napa County Sheriff’s Office recommended a misdemeanor hit-and-run charge and referred the case to the Napa County District Attorney’s Office and to the California DMV for a driver re-evaluation.
- The case arrives against the backdrop of Pelosi’s 2022 guilty plea for a Napa County misdemeanor DUI, a fact that has shaped public attention and could influence prosecutorial and licensing review.