Pelosi DA defends misdemeanor charges, withholding of police dashcam video in California DUI arrest

The district attorney charged with prosecuting Paul Pelosi, millionaire husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for a May DUI offense defended the light charges against him and her request to withhold police dashcam video of the incident following his guilty plea Tuesday. 

In an interview from her office in Napa County, California, Allison Haley said the charges against Pelosi warranted misdemeanor charges despite another driver sustaining injuries, which could have been also charged as a felony. 

"When we evaluated the nature of our survivor's injuries and so forth… in keeping with how we handle every other case, the charging decision was made as a misdemeanor," she told Fox News Digital. "His injuries were there and certainly a result of the crash but not the kind of injuries that we see in a felony case like lacerated livers or disfiguring lacerations or broken bones."

On Tuesday, Pelosi pleaded guilty to driving under the influence and causing injury in connection to drunk driving charges from a May 28 incident. His 2021 Porsche and another driver's 2014 Jeep sustained "major collision damage" in the crash, and responding officers found Pelosi in his driver’s seat in his damaged car near the intersection of California Route 29 and Oakville Cross Road.

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The plea agreement includes a jail term of five days, but he was given credit for four days, two from actual time served and two for conduct credits. 

The remaining day will be covered by an 8-hour work program. Pelosi will also attend a three-month drunk driving program, drive for one year with an ignition interlock device, make restitution payments, as well as serve three years of probation.

Video footage from the aftermath of the incident from the California Highway Patrol was initially withheld from the public at Haley's request, she said, noting that it has since been rescinded following the disposition of the case. 

"Our case is over," she said. "I swore an oath to ensure safe and equitable and impartial jurors for jury trials that is why I have a standing request in all cases, not just Mr. Pelosi's case, don't release evidence until I have an ability to pick a fair jury to handle that matter."

Fox News has requested the footage from CHP. 

The other driver in the case initially appeared to sustain minor injuries, Haley said. Moments after the accident, he was seen on police video walking and talking to responding officers. He didn't complain of pain or go to a hospital that evening, she said. 

However, a few days later, CHP realized they mistakenly kept some of his paperwork from that night and met with him.

"It was at that meeting that the victim, or survivor, was stiff and sore and was having some difficulty with his right arm and was suffering from headaches," Haley said. "That gives me some real concern. Complications from car accidents are not always obvious."

The driver sought medical attention but did not have any broken bones or internal injuries and has been taking over-the-counter medications," Haley said. 

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The top prosecutor noted that media coverage of the case has been fraught with false narratives and amid public scrutiny of Pelosi, particularly when public officials accused her of drooping the charges when none had even been filed, she said. 

"Sometimes I watch news coverage and it's like they're talking about a completely different case," Haley said. "It sort of has gone through this cycle of bizarre facts, none of which is true."

"My attention, my focus, has been on what the evidence has been as it has come into the office and how grateful I am that we have a fully functioning, if a little bit sore, survivor in this case," she added.