A Marin County Superior Court judge has ruled there is sufficient evidence to have a Fairfax bar owner tried for allegedly hitting a pedestrian while driving under the influence of alcohol.
The preliminary hearing concluded Thursday for Edward Bacci, the 81-year-old proprietor of Nave’s Bar and Grill. The pedestrian suffered a head injury and fractures when Bacci’s vehicle struck her in a crosswalk on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard on July 23, Fairfax police reported.
During the hearing, the prosecution played a security camera video of a vehicle striking the 75-year-old pedestrian. Fairfax police Officer Danilo Gecale testified that Bacci told him that he owned the vehicle and that he admitted he drank alcohol that night.
Officers arrested Bacci after conducting sobriety tests, although Becale said that Bacci’s blood test was within the legal limit for alcohol content.
Bacci testified that he drank wine with his dinner at home and he later consumed whiskey at his bar the night of the collision. Bacci said his headlights were on and was he looking straight ahead on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard but did not see the pedestrian. He said he stopped right after he heard a noise.
George Oliver, a lawyer, testified that he had met with Bacci for a business meeting at Nave’s that night. He did not observe Bacci to be intoxicated before he drove away.
Prosecutor Christopher Wong reiterated that Bacci admitted that he consumed alcohol before the incident.
“The defendant drank right before he got on the road — he lit the fuse on the bomb,” Wong said in his closing argument.
The case by defense attorney Kevin Heaney focused heavily on safety issues with the crosswalk. Defense witnesses said the crossing is dangerous because it is dimly lit by street lights, lacks signage, lacks sidewalks and is on an elevated road that makes it difficult for drivers to see pedestrians.
“The case is a terrible accident in a terrible situation,” Heaney said.
Judge Geoffrey Howard ruled that there is enough evidence to try Bacci on one of the charges, driving under influence of alcohol and causing injuries. But he dismissed the charge of driving with a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 or higher, citing a lack of evidence.
Howard set Bacci’s next court date for May 23. Wong and Heaney declined to comment after the hearing.
Bacci remains free on bail.