According to a recent story appearing on the Yahoo! News website, on Monday, the Bakersfield Police Department confirmed that a former assistant chief on its force had been arrested on suspicion of DUI.
The Kern County District Attorney’s office confirmed that 44-year-old Evan Demestihas had been charged with two misdemeanor counts related to driving under the influence of alcohol with a blood alcohol content of over 0.08 percent.
A spokesperson for the Bakersfield Police Department said that the incident happened on July 21, 2022, when the California Highway Patrol pulled over Demestihas on suspicion of DUI. The Kern County District Attorney’s Office charged him in August, placing him on administrative leave.
This was not the first time that Demestihas had gotten into trouble. In September 2019, the BPD recommended a felony corporal injury charge against him after he injured his then-wife at the VIP lounge. The Kern County and Kings County District Attorney’s Offices investigated the domestic violence case but declined to charge Demestihas.
A hearing for the case is scheduled for February 16.
Demestihas has filed suit against the City of Bakersfield, alleging that the domestic violence charges were retaliation on the part of the former police chief, Lyle Martin, and others because he suggested that Martin’s son may have broken the law in connection to a fatal shooting.
A hearing for the civil case is scheduled for March 6.
