Seaside Park woman pleads guilty in fatal DUI hit-and-run
The Ocean County Prosecutor said that 51-year-old Genell McInaw was driving a dark sedan when she struck 75-year-old Robert Popovics and fled the area.
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A Seaside Park woman has pleaded guilty in a deadly crash that happened two years ago in Ocean County.
Prosecutors say 51‑year‑old Genell McInaw was driving a dark sedan when she struck 75‑year‑old Robert Popovics and fled the area.
Police responded around 9:30 p.m. on Sept. 23, 2024, to Dupont Avenue and the Boulevard, where Popovics was found unconscious in the roadway with serious injuries.
Popovics was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center where he died on Nov. 1, 2024, from injuries related to the crash.
Investigators determined McInaw was driving south on the Boulevard when she hit Popovics.
She was taken into custody at her home and charged with knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident.
After being transported to Community Medical Center, her blood was drawn and later tested at .187. State experts estimated her blood alcohol content at the time of the crash would have been .21.
After Popovics’ death and the toxicology results, charges were upgraded to vehicular homicide, strict liability vehicular homicide and knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash resulting in death.
McInaw is scheduled for sentencing on June 26. The state will seek a five‑year prison term.
Popovics was a longtime Seaside Park resident, a U.S. Marine Corps Vietnam veteran and operated the Shady Rest in Bayville with his wife, Alexis.
