Jury selection underway in DUI trial of former DA’s wife

Jury selection began Wednesday for the trial of former Riverside County District Attorney Paul Zellerbach’s wife, who is accused of crashing her vehicle into a tree while driving under the influence of prescription drugs.

Paige Elizabeth Zellerbach, a 51-year-old dentist, is charged with misdemeanor DUI for the Dec. 16, 2014, mid-morning wreck near her home on Overlook Parkway in Riverside.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Samuel Diaz summoned several panels of prospective jurors to the Banning Justice Center for screening as to their qualifications and availability for what’s expected to be a three-day trial.

According to a trial brief submitted by the California Attorney General’s Office, which is handling the prosecution, the defendant ran into a tree in her black late-model BMW while trying to complete a left turn onto Overlook from southbound Orozco Street around 10:35 a.m.

The BMW’s right side was significantly damaged in the crash, which caused the airbags to deploy, though Zellerbach was not injured.

According to prosecutors, a motorist followed the defendant after seeing her nearly sideswipe a parked car and also almost rear-end him on Mary Street, where Zellerbach has her dental practice, prompting him to pull out of her way for his own safety.

The witness called 911 after Zellerbach plowed into the tree. A Riverside police detective, Dawn Boggs, happened to be in the area and went to check the wreck about the time a fire department crew arrived to assist, according to the brief.

“Boggs recognized defendant as a dentist who had treated her on a few occasions,” the brief states. “Boggs … asked (Zellerbach) what had happened. Defendant looked down, spoke quietly and slurred her speech. Her eyes were red and droopy. Boggs then noticed defendant was wearing green scrubs and that she had defecated in her pants.”

After the investigator asked several more times what had happened, Zellerbach finally replied, “I don’t know … the next thing I knew, I hit a tree,” according to the brief.

A traffic patrolman then took over the investigation and administered two field sobriety tests, during which Zellerbach “admitted that she had taken Lexapro” two hours earlier, court papers allege.

At some point while the dentist was speaking with officers, her husband arrived, but the county’s then top prosecutor apparently did not interfere with the investigation.

Riverside police Sgt. Cliff Mason took custody of Zellerbach, arresting her on suspicion of DUI and transporting her to the Magnolia Avenue police station for a drug test and additional questioning. According to the brief, as the defendant was attempting to complete a finger-to-nose test at the station, she “lost her balance and fell backwards,” forcing an officer to catch her.

She allegedly told the lawmen that “I can’t even do this one sober,” court papers state.

The defendant indicated that the night before, she had taken either Temazepam or Diazepam, which are anti-anxiety drugs known to impair judgment, according to the prosecution.

A drug test was performed and revealed that Zellerbach had Citalopram, an anti-depressant, Phentermine, typically used to induce weight loss, and Lorazepam, an anti-anxiety medication, in her system, according to court documents.

At the time, Paul Zellerbach was serving his last weeks as district attorney, having lost his re-election bid six months earlier to homicide prosecutor Mike Hestrin. During the race, the D.A. was caught vandalizing one of Hestrin’s campaign signs, leading the Indio Police Department to seek misdemeanor and felony charges against him.

The Attorney General’s Office filed a vandalism allegation, to which Zellerbach pleaded guilty in early January 2015 and was sentenced to 12 months probation.