Woman convicted after Pacifica wrong-way fatal crash

A Daly City woman was found guilty of vehicular manslaughter on Wednesday for crashing into another driver head-on while drunk and driving the wrong way on state Highway 1 in Pacifica last year, prosecutors said.

A jury found Ana Lilian Reepen, 42, guilty of felony vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence while under the influence of alcohol for the July 25, 2015, crash that killed 54-year-old Pacifica resident Bruce Bernor, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

Reepen turned onto Highway 1 from Seabowl Lane at 6:42 p.m. that evening, but pulled into the wrong lane of traffic, heading south in the northbound lanes, according to prosecutors.

One car swerved out of her way but Bernor couldn’t get out of the way in time and the two collided head-on. Both of them were taken to a hospital, where Bernor died about two hours later.

Responding police officers noticed Reepen smelled like alcohol, her speech was slurred and her eyes were red. A blood test administered at the hospital two hours after the crash shoed her blood-alcohol level to be .21 percent — more than twice the legal limit to drive, prosecutors said.

But Reepen’s attorney James Campbell disputed that she was drunk, and said there were irregularities in the hospital’s blood test procedure that makes him think that it wasn’t a valid reading.

Reepen had been free on $250,000 bail, but after the verdict Judge Elizabeth Hill remanded her into custody on $500,000 bail. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 16.

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