Malibu Councilman Skylar Peak is being investigated for allegedly leaving the scene after driving erratically and damaging his truck on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu on Christmas Day.
A motorist called 911 about 7 a.m. Dec. 25 reporting an erratic driver on eastbound PCH near Guernsey Avenue in western Malibu, according to Det. David Huelsen of the Lost Hills/Malibu Sheriff's Station.
"[The caller] said that the truck collided with several of the delineators around Zuma Beach," Huelsen said.
The detective said the erratic driver plowed through 400 feet of the delineators, which are three-foot-tall reflectors that separate eastbound from westbound traffic on PCH, damaging the front of the truck.
The 911 caller lost sight of the truck and decided, "'I better try to find this car. I’m afraid this person maybe a danger to others on the roadway,'" according to Huelsen.
The truck was found near Westward Beach Road, the detective said.
"The car is abandoned there, partially blocking one of the lanes and leaking fluids," Huelsen said. "The deputies get there and there is nobody there."
The vehicle was identified as belonging to Malibu Councilman Skylar Peak, who was interviewed by detectives at a later date, according to Huelsen.
"[Peak] said he was driving the car. He had his own explanation for what occurred," Huelsen said, adding that the incident is being investigated as a hit and run.
The investigation will likely take a few more weeks before a determination is made if the case should be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, he said.
When contacted, Peak referred all questions about the investigation to his attorney.
Peak's Santa Monica-based attorney Michael Schwimer confirmed Peak would not be speaking about the hit and run allegations.
"Mr. Peak is confident after the investigation is concluded he will be absolved of any wrongdoing," Schwimer said.
Malibu City Attorney Christi Hogin said Peak is accountable to the people who elected him.
"Skylar Peak was elected by the people of Malibu. In a democracy, all our elected officials are accountable to the people. I have no reason to believe that Skylar is not perfectly qualified to serve on the council," Hogin said.
Last year, the D.A.'s Office opted to not file charges against Peak stemming from an investigation into his alleged behavior at a Malibu shopping center.
The investigation began on July 11 following allegations that Peak, wearing a Speedo swimsuit, threatened security guards at the Point Dume Village with part of a pair of scissors.
Peak, who said afterwards he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, was checked into a county hospital and underwent a psychological evaluation.
Due to the investigation, the Malibu City Council voted against appointing Peak as mayor pro tem even though he was the top vote getter in April's election. Instead, Joan House was appointed to the position.
Did you see or hear anything in this neighborhood? Email jessica.davis@patch.com.
" We experienced the effects ( this last summer ) of someone who thought they could manage mental illness with a workout regimen. It ended in suicide." Wait...what happened to it being all about the lagoon ??? Does that mean you aren't trying to blame me for that anymore ? you guys are LAME !!!
You and your bulldozer boyfriend obtusely blame Andy Lyon and other lagoon protectors for stephanie's suicide and now you come off like a mental health expert? You are so disingenuous! You are a patchaholic, always weighing in on every topic. Do you think anyone cares what you think. Please go back to wherever you came from! And by the way, Skylar, who both you and Steve love so much (PUKE!!) was adamantly opposed to the lagoon destruction project, nor could he stand the idiots proposing the genocide of the ecosystem that you, Woods, Purvey and your ilk supported. So while he may have been all smiles with you, the truth is as he always told me,"keep your friends close but your enemies closer."
In A First-Rate Madness, Nassir Ghaemi, director of the Mood Disorders Program at Tufts Medical Center, offers a myth-shattering exploration of the powerful connections between mood illnesses (depression and bipolar disorder) and leadership. He sets forth a controversial, compelling thesis: the very qualities that mark those with mood disorders—creativity, resilience, empathy, and realism—also make for the best leaders in times of crisis. From the importance of the “depressive realism” and creativity of mentally ill or mentally abnormal figures such as Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King, Jr., to the lackluster leadership of “mentally normal” men such as Neville Chamberlain, George W. Bush, and Tony Blair, A First-Rate Madness overturns many of our most cherished perceptions about greatness and the mind and provides a unique insight for understanding our current political leaders and presidential candidates going into the next election season.
the reason we support Skylar is that he is the ONLY one on the city council who has our backs. The rest will sell us down the stream. Do they answer to Sharon Barovsky? Hmm, maybe. Either way one needs to just look to anemic fight they put up for the lagoon destruction project and now the proposed sewer system to see where their loyalties ARE NOT. Bi polar episode or not, Skylar shows more sanity and has more backbone then the other four combigned.
Time to grow up, surfer-boy, and fast. I don't give a rat's patotie about your bi- or quadra-polar personality. People needing meds need to take them. Frankly, I think he should resign for the good of Malibu right away and take care of his problems. In his current state of mind Skyler is a liability to this community in my opinion.
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/11/local/la-me-lagoon-suicide-20120611 http://www.ivpressonline.com/videogallery/70392361/News/Firefighter-Takes-Her-Own-Life-Over-Malibu-Project-According-to-Boyfriend As for keeping on topic… hahaha, do I also need to post the links where you, Cece, bring up the lagoon when it has NOTHING AT ALL to do with the topic? There's a lot to choose from. Btw, y’all have a pretty interesting idea of an “olive branch.” Must be a torch in one hand and a burning olive tree in the other. Please don’t leave the kitchen, we have strong winds tonight. And I know, I know, everyone is just attacking poor innocent you. You’re just trying to help and inform. Come to think of it, you remind me of someone.
You have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME !!!
"We understand why you like him - he's a righteous dude who surfs. That's about it." Where did I say that I was praising Skylar ? I was just pointing out that he is FAR FROM the only council person that has taken our lives into their hands on PCH ( or Malibu Rd ;0... no delineators to knock down there ) behind the wheel of a car when they possibly shouldn't have. BTW... Does anybody know where the past council will be meeting now that Guido's is closed ? BWAHahahah
And maybe you changed your mind. I get that. But don’t lie about it.
looks like cece's threats got joe rudi's comment pulled right away . " If there are some in this community ignorant enough to think someone would commit suicide for falsely thinking I was sleeping with their boyfriend - especially when it is so far from the truth it's just silly at this point, then they most certainly need to get their heads checked - and FAST." but you guys are together now right ?? uhhh....yeah
This thread WAS about Skylar, but Cece chose to comment about and try and relate it to Stephanie . Cece ....YOU STARTED IT ! that is the real 411 here
He will shift into a more elegant pattern of living when he sorts out how to manage his brain chemistry. That management includes diet, exercise, some sort of process to control brain wave functioning such as meditation or NLP practices, etc., including perhaps a medication. This is a path we all have to tred one way or another. Compassion and engagement are the only positive ways to create a better world.