Paul Pelosi has been barred from driving for six months after hitting a parked car and leaving the scene in California’s wine country. The case brings the former House speaker’s husband back to court, four years after his DUI conviction.
Pelosi, 86, struck an unoccupied vehicle in Yountville on July 3 and drove away, Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley said Tuesday. He pleaded no contest to misdemeanor hit-and-run and a traffic infraction for making an unlawful turn.
Napa County Superior Court Judge Scott R.L. Young sentenced Pelosi to one year of probation and imposed a six-month driving ban, the longest period allowed under the provisions cited by prosecutors. He must also complete a 10-day work program and report to the Napa County Department of Corrections for booking by Nov. 20.
As part of the plea agreement, Pelosi paid the vehicle’s owner $11,191.14 in restitution. He was also ordered to pay court fines and fees.
The July crash involved a parked Tesla, according to the criminal complaint. Pelosi was allegedly driving a burgundy Maserati convertible and left without trying to identify the owner or providing the information required by California law.
Deputies later found him about half a mile away. He allegedly told officers he had planned to return to the scene.
Pelosi was charged in connection with a separate Napa County crash in 2022 and pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DUI. That conviction required him to attend a DUI education program, use an ignition interlock device and pay restitution and fines, in addition to serving probation.
His driving record also includes a 1957 crash in San Mateo County that killed his 19-year-old brother. Pelosi was driving, but a jury found him not guilty of wrongdoing.
In more recent years, Pelosi received traffic citations in four Bay Area counties: Napa, San Mateo, Marin and San Francisco. The reported violations included speeding, running a red light, driving the wrong way on a one-way street and using a cellphone without a hands-free device.
Prosecutors said they announced the case because of the public attention it had drawn. They noted that misdemeanor hit-and-run cases involving only property damage generally do not receive a news release.
