Driver charged in fatal Chester Ave crash didn’t call 911. He got a milkshake

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) -- When a pickup hit and killed a pedestrian on the Chester Avenue bridge, Bobby Lemons, the alleged driver, didn't call 911 despite having two cellphones in the vehicle. Instead, he returned to the Oildale home of the pickup's owner -- they're good friends, he often borrows the truck -- and said he thought he'd hit a shopping cart or dog. After learning a person had been hit, he and the owner removed items from the truck. Lemons was sipping a milkshake when police arrived hours later. "Bobby Lemons had time to get frozen fast food as he waited to contact officers six-and-a-half hours after the collision," a police investigator wrote in newly-released court documents. That was plenty of time for Lemons, his friend and the friend's wife to potentially tamper with evidence, rehearse what they'd say and let drugs or alcohol leave Lemons' bloodstream, the investigator wrote. Lemons, 35, is charged with hit and run causing death and is due in court Friday. Court records show he has an extensive criminal history, with convictions for burglary, drug possession and petty theft. The crash happened in the southbound lanes of Chester Avenue, north of West Columbus Street, shortly before 4 a.m. on April 23. John Dwayne Ross, 48, was hit and pronounced dead at the scene. Another man at the scene was hit by debris. He told police he and Ross had been pushing bicycles across the bridge. He walked on the west sidewalk while Ross followed just behind him in the southbound bike lane. The man said they were talking when he heard a loud boom -- and Ross disappeared. He didn't immediately realize what happened, then saw an older-model white pickup speeding south on Chester Avenue toward Columbus Street, he told police. The impact sent Ross flying over the hood, according to the reports. It also flung Ross' bike into the other bike, tearing it from the man's hands. Police used Flock surveillance cameras and managed to identify the suspect vehicle. They contacted the truck's owner, then arrived at his home in the area of McCord Avenue and Oildale Drive. They saw the pickup. It had "significant front end damage which was consistent with striking a pedestrian," according to the reports. Lemons arrived at the home around 10:30 a.m. He got out of a car; an officer noticed he was holding a milkshake. Lemons admitted to driving the truck at the time of the crash, documents said. The pickup's owner and his wife said Lemons hung out with them the the night before and slept on their couch. They said they didn't realize he'd left in the truck, but the wife heard him return after 4 a.m. They both claimed Lemons didn't drink or use drugs, according to the documents. The wife said Lemons told her he believed he'd struck a shopping cart or dog. Police note in the documents the damage to the pickup was more severe than what hitting a shopping cart or a dog would inflict. The wife said it wasn't until hours later they saw online that a pedestrian had been hit. She knew the pickup would be impounded, so she gave her husband trash bags to get his belongings out, documents said. Then, according to her statement, she took Lemons to the crash scene to speak with police but no one was there. They also went to the police station, she said, but no one spoke with them. She laughed about what happened, saying it would be silly for a driver to stop at the scene if they believed they'd hit a shopping cart, according to the documents. "It was clear that (the wife) was trying to justify Bobby Lemons' actions and normalize his behavior," an investigator wrote. He added, "It is impossible to know for certain what all was removed from the vehicle and what evidence was potentially tampered with or disturbed."