"The update is that no charging decision has been made yet," the Napa County District Attorney's Office said in a statement Monday. "We have received partial documents for our review but are waiting for a key report from the Napa County Sheriff's Office before making a filing decision."
The Napa County Sheriff's Office said a witness called authorities around 2:30 p.m. Friday to report that a brown convertible traveling on Yount Street in Yountville crashed into a parked car, stopped briefly and drove away.
RELATED: Paul Pelosi, husband of Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, facing hit-and-run charge in Napa Co. crash
The parked car, a black Tesla, had major rear-end damage and its wheels were pushed onto the curb from the impact, according to the sheriff's office. The Tesla was empty. No injuries were reported.
A California Highway Patrol officer later found the brown convertible about a quarter-mile away, partially blocking Yountville Cross Road with significant front-end damage. Investigators said the car had been driven until it became disabled.
The driver was later identified as Paul Pelosi.
The sheriff's office said Pelosi told deputies he knew he had hit something, but did not know what he hit. He was not arrested, which the sheriff's office said is common in misdemeanor cases like this.
Investigators said alcohol was not believed to be a factor. A preliminary alcohol screening showed Pelosi's blood alcohol content was 0.00, according to the sheriff's office.
By Monday, the Tesla had been towed from Yount Street. ABC7 Eyewitness News reached the owner of the Tesla, who confirmed it was her car involved in the crash but declined to speak on camera. She said an insurance claim is underway.
A family spokesperson for Pelosi released a statement Sunday.
"Mr. Paul Pelosi has personally apologized to the owner of the vehicle and assured them that he would take responsibility for the damage to their vehicle," the spokesperson said. "Speaker Pelosi will not be commenting further on this private matter."
Pelosi's attorney, Amanda Bevins, who also represented him after his 2022 Napa County DUI crash, declined to comment further Monday.
Pelosi's latest case comes four years after his 2022 Napa County DUI crash, when he pleaded guilty to DUI causing injury. He was sentenced to five days in jail, three years of probation, a three-month DUI program, an ignition interlock device for one year, and fines and restitution.
Months later, in October 2022, Pelosi was attacked inside his San Francisco home after a man broke in while looking for then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was not home. Pelosi suffered a fractured skull after being hit in the head with a hammer. The attacker, David DePape, was later convicted of assault and attempted kidnapping.
The sheriff's office said it plans to submit a DMV re-evaluation referral for Pelosi, described as common for elderly drivers after a crash.
That has renewed a broader conversation about older drivers, safety behind the wheel and how California determines when someone's driving ability should be reviewed.
Marc Samuels, a certified driving rehabilitation specialist with The Safe Driver, said the focus should be on ability, not age alone.
"The number one thing to be aware of, it's about ability, not age," Samuels said.
Samuels said driving ability can be affected by several factors, including vision, cognition, reaction time, attention and trauma. He said he cannot speak to Pelosi's medical history specifically, but said head trauma is something doctors and specialists may consider when evaluating driving safety.
"That attack, yes, that's traumatic brain injury," Samuels said. "Damage to the head affects the brain. Absolutely. I don't know (Pelosi's) specific medical history at all, so I can't speak to that in his situation, but certainly, that will do some damage."
Samuels said California's DMV review process, which Pelosi is expected to now undergo at the request of the Napa Coutny Sheriff's Office, can help identify unsafe drivers, but he believes the system still has gaps.
"It's not about age, it's about ability. Now could our DMV do a better job? One hundred percent," Samuels said.
He said DMV reviews ideally should include deeper screening for issues such as nighttime vision and neurocognitive function.
"They should be checking contrast sensitivity -t hat's nighttime driving right there," Samuels said. "They should be doing a simple neurocognitive assessment. They can't do that because they just don't have the time or the skill set."
The Bay Area has seen several recent high-profile crashes involving older drivers.
In 2024, a driver who is now 80 hit and killed a family of four at a West Portal bus stop in San Francisco.
Earlier this year, a 76-year-old driver crashed into New Lun Ting Cafe in San Francisco's Chinatown while trying to park, killing one person and seriously injuring another.
Still, experts caution against treating age alone as the issue.
Dr. Anna Chodos, a UCSF geriatrician, said families and doctors should look at a person's overall function.
"For me, the key things are not age necessarily, but function," Chodos said. "So, are there any concerns about how they're able to get through a day, manage their affairs? That could be a sign that they also might have challenges with driving, which is a really complex task."
Chodos said warning signs can include near misses, drowsiness, trouble driving at night, confusion, changes in daily function or a driver beginning to avoid certain roads or driving situations.
"Are they starting to use safe strategies or not?" Chodos said. "Are they already limiting driving at night, driving to new places? Driving in certain areas where they have trouble. So, some people already take a lot of precautions, and that's a good sign. That's a protective factor."
She said many of these conversations begin at home, before they ever reach law enforcement or the DMV.
Chodos also said the issue can be difficult for families because driving is often tied to independence.
"The first thing right out of the gate is to recognize that, for a lot of people, especially if they've been driving their whole life or almost all of their whole life, and they're very reliant on driving, this is a really big deal," Chodos said.
She said the goal should be safety without unnecessarily taking away independence.
"I think we need to come into these conversations with ideas for what we could do to help them still be independent and have a life they want to lead without a car," Chodos said.
California drivers 70 and older already have to renew their licenses in person. A crash, medical concern or referral from law enforcement, a doctor or a family member can trigger a closer DMV review. In Pelosi's case, that closer look is now headed to the DMV.
For now, prosecutors are still waiting on the sheriff's office's final report before deciding whether to file charges. The DA's office previously said it recognizes the significant public interest in the case, but no charging decision has been made.