Emeryville hit-and-run victim from January dies; police seeking harsher charge against suspect
Michelle Farmer Eldridge, a longtime attorney and the mother of two children, suffered major injuries when she was hit by a pickup truck Jan. 28 in the 4400 block of Shellmound Street.
EMERYVILLE — A 57-year-old Piedmont woman critically injured in a hit-and-run collision in January has died, and police are asking prosecutors to increase the charges filed against the suspect driver.
Michelle Farmer Eldridge, a longtime attorney and the mother of two children, suffered major injuries when she was hit by a pickup truck Jan. 28 in the 4400 block of Shellmound Street. Eldridge was walking on a sidewalk near the IKEA store when she was struck.
A man walking with her was also hit by the truck. He suffered moderate injuries and was treated and released from a hospital, police said.
Eldridge died Oct. 31 in South Carolina, authorities said; her family had moved her there so they could care for her after the crash, authorities said.
After striking Eldridge, the truck crashed into a police and the suspected driver, Nathan Stenberg, 35, of San Francisco, fled on foot, according to court documents. Witnesses directed police to a nearby restaurant, where Stenberg was found hiding in the bathroom.
Police found a pistol in a bag next to Stenberg in the bathroom, according to the documents, and empty liquor bottles inside the truck.
Stenberg was charged Jan. 30 with driving under the influence resulting in injury, leaving the scene of an accident and carrying a concealed firearm, all felonies. He has pleaded not guilty.
Emeryville police said they are now also asking prosecutors to charge Stenberg with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. As of Tuesday morning, the complaint against Stenberg had not been amended to include that charge.
After a preliminary hearing in February, a judge ordered that Stenberg stand trial on the previously charged counts, as well as some enhancements, including causing great bodily harm. A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Dec. 19.
Stenberg is being held at Santa Rita Jail in lieu of $205,000 bail.
According to an obituary published on the news site PiedmontExedra.com in November, Eldridge, a Massachusetts native, “was devoted to her children and was their most enthusiastic cheerleader, attending all their extracurricular events and consistently providing them with the confidence and unwavering support they needed.”
The obituary says “she was an accomplished general counsel and business executive with over two decades of legal and business experience in investment advisory services, technology, and operations” and was “an energetic leader, a trusted advisor, and a mentor to younger women attorneys.”