Oakmont woman still fighting for life after DUI crash

An 85-year-old Oakmont woman was fighting for her life at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital on Thursday, one day after she and a friend were struck by a suspected DUI driver, police officials said.

Jackie Simon was in very weak condition, Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Ryan Corcoran said. A woman walking with her, Josephine Ross, 91, suffered less severe but still serious injuries. She also remained hospitalized Thursday.

Driver Gayle Gray, 77, posted bail of $100,000 and was released from the Sonoma County Jail on Thursday, Sonoma County Sheriff’s Sgt. Cecile Focha said.

Gray was booked on suspicion of driving under the influence of a combination of prescription drugs and alcohol, plus enhancements for causing great bodily injuries while intoxicated and upon people over the age of 70. She is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.

The collision occurred about 1:20 p.m. Wednesday as Gray was leaving a parking lot at the Oakmont Village Market in a 1994 Lexus sedan. Simon and Ross had just left a nearby cleaners and were walking on the sidewalk near the market.

Gray told police she meant to stop but accidentally stepped on the gas pedal instead of the brake. She said her lap dog distracted her, according to police.

The Lexus lurched forward and slammed into Simon and Ross, carrying them on the hood of the car and then throwing the women from the hood onto the road, police said.

The Lexus continued forward, jumping the curb at the median dividing Oakmont Drive, knocking over a road sign and continuing across two lanes running in the opposite direction of travel, police said. The car jumped another curb before crashing into a chain-link fence and dirt berm where it came to rest, its front wheels over the curb.

In initial interviews, Gray told police a list of prescription medications she had taken, Corcoran said.

Corcoran said that it’s clear Gray hit the gas pedal instead of the brake and that there is no indication she did so on purpose. It’s also plausible that the dog may have distracted her, he said.

However, those details are “irrelevant” to the criminal charges, Corcoran said, because the driver’s suspected intoxication “would be the primary reason a person wouldn’t be able to operate a vehicle correctly.”

Police secured a search warrant to get a blood sample from Gray, which was collected and sent to a state Department of Justice lab for analysis.

Police towed the Lexus to evaluate it for evidence.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.