Mandeville city attorney involved in crash; had drink to 'calm' down

An accident involving Mandeville City Attorney David Cressy and a 21-year-old man just over a week ago is raising eyebrows.

According to the Mandeville Police Department, Cressy left the scene of the incident to grab a glass of wine from nearby Italian restaurant Nuvolari’s to “calm” him down before returning to talk with police.

This raises questions because, according to Police Chief Tom Buell, city policy mandates a drug/alcohol test be administered immediately if a city official or employee is involved in an accident while driving their city-issued vehicle. Cressy’s alcohol consumption following the incident nullifies that test because results would have been tainted.

“I’m sure as an attorney he knew it,” Buell said. “But I’m not saying that’s why he did it.”

The accident occurred shortly after 11 p.m. last Friday when Cressy backed his city-issued 2007 Ford Expedition out of his driveway in the 100 block of Coffee Street destined for Walgreens to pick up blood pressure medicine, Cressy said in a written statement to the Mandeville PD.

That’s when he spotted 21-year-old Kody Najarian on his 2003 Yamaha motorcycle careening down the road at nearly 80 miles per hour straight for Cressy, according to eyewitnesses.

Najarian hit his brakes before losing control of the motorcycle. When the bike fell over, it threw Najarian into a nearby ditch then continued its slide, eventually slamming into the front, left side of Cressy’s vehicle, according to the police report.

The SUV sustained minor damage, while the motorcycle was badly damaged.

The impact was so intense, Cressy wrote, it “lifted the car up.”

Cressy was still in his vehicle after the accident when Najarian walked over and notified him he was all right.

“I think I had dialed 911, then 626-9611, then 911 again, because I couldn’t get the phone to work right,” Cressy stated.

Soon after, a truck with “young men” pulled up saying “everything is cool, he’s OK.”

At this point, Cressy said he felt his blood pressure elevate, and he began to feel ill.

“I knew he was OK, and his friends said they would take care of him and put the damaged motorcycle in the back of their truck,” Cressy said. “I felt so bad that I went to Nuvolari’s and had a glass of wine.”

After having the drink Cressy returned to his house to give his account to police.

Najarian was issued a citation for reckless driving and arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated, Capt. Ron Ruple said.

Buell said Cressy didn’t commit any crime because he spoke with Najarian after the accident and he returned to speak to police.

But if officers suspected Cressy at fault, administering a sobriety test is standard. But because of his glass of wine the test would have been scratched.

“It wasn’t the smart thing to do, and absolutely you don’t want to leave the scene of the accident,” Buell said.

Najarian sustained minor injuries in the crash but refused medical treatment. Buell said his life was spared because he landed in the grassy ditch.

Cressy could not be reached for comment.