Napa Wine Tycoon Faces Scrutiny After Rolls Royce Crash and Alleged Rage Incident

A wealthy Napa Valley powerbroker accused of mowing down two women with his $400,000 Rolls-Royce SUV is insisting the vehicle ‘accelerated on its own’ when it crushed two pedestrians in its path.

Robert Knox Thomas, 79, a longtime bull terrier breeder and Napa County resident, launched an aggressive legal counteroffensive after the two women injured in the November 2024 crash sued him.

The women said the devastating collision left them facing a lifetime of medical care, with one paralyzed in the incident.

The victims described as the collision as part of a rage-filled street attack, but Thomas is now pointing the finger at the ultra-luxury automaker.

In a newly filed cross-complaint, Thomas claims his Rolls-Royce Cullinan malfunctioned moments before it plowed into Annamarie Thammala, 29, and Veronnica Pansanouck, 31, as they crossed a downtown Napa street four days before Thanksgiving.

According to the filing, Thomas insists the luxury SUV ‘accelerated on its own despite (his) attempt to stop the vehicle,’ reports The Mercury News.

The counterclaim comes amid a high-stakes civil lawsuit brought by the injured women, who accuse Thomas of acting with ‘rage, aggression, and a deliberate disregard for human life’ when his 6,000-pound SUV surged through a marked crosswalk.

Rolls Royce has denied Thomas’s allegations, and said in a court filing that his vehicle ‘met all federal safety standards.’

Surveillance footage captured the moment Thammala and Pansanouck were stepping onto the sidewalk when the Rolls Royce suddenly turned onto First Street and barreled toward them.

Surveillance footage showed Annamarie Thammala and Veronnica Pansanouck about to step onto the sidewalk when the SUV turned onto the street and ran them over

Thammala was thrown violently into the air, slammed into a building, and crushed beneath a tree severed by the vehicle, according to the lawsuit.

She suffered multiple fractures and catastrophic spinal injuries that left her paralyzed from the waist down.

Pansanouck was dragged and pinned beneath the SUV before it crashed into Tarla Mediterranean Bar & Grill, court records said.

She sustained multiple spinal fractures to her back and legs and has undergone several surgeries.

Their attorneys say both women will require lifelong medical care.

The women’s sisters, Erica Kalah and Colicia Pansanouk, were crossing the street alongside them and are also plaintiffs in the case, alleging severe emotional trauma after witnessing the impact.

Police say Thomas was attempting a right turn from School Street onto First Street when the Rolls-Royce suddenly accelerated at high speed.

The Napa Police Department’s Reconstruction Team later concluded that Thomas ’caused the vehicle to accelerate, believing he was trying to stop the vehicle,’ a finding disclosed last summer after a lengthy investigation.

Thammala, 29, was thrown into the air, slammed into a building and crushed beneath a tree that had been severed by the car, the complaint stated. Pansanouck, 31, was dragged and pinned beneath the Rolls-Royce before it crashed into a nearby restaurant

Robert Thomas is pictured with his wife Grace. The pair had a mutual love for bull terriers and were married in 2018

Thomas’s Rolls-Royce crashed into a nearby restaurant, damaging the exterior of the building

Thomas was ultimately cited for three traffic violations: exceeding the speed limit, failing to stop at a stop sign, and causing a collision with great bodily injury, though the infractions were handled as citations rather than criminal charges. He faces no jail time.

Investigators determined the SUV reached speeds of up to 39 mph in a 20-mph zone.

Police also concluded that drugs, alcohol, medical conditions, or a vehicle defect did not contribute to the crash. Thomas pleaded not guilty to the citations.

Thomas is now attempting to shift financial liability to Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and three other companies connected to the vehicle, including Holman Motor Cars, Rolls-Royce of Los Gatos, and Florida-based aftermarket shop Wheels Boutique.

The lawsuit alleges negligence in the vehicle’s design, maintenance, or modification and seeks reimbursement for any judgment or settlement Thomas might be forced to pay.

Rolls-Royce fired back earlier this month in a January 8 court filing, denying ‘each and every allegation’ and insisting the vehicle met all federal safety standards.

Attorneys for the automaker argue the SUV ‘comported with all applicable government regulations, rules, orders, codes and statutes,’ including Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, and demanded a jury trial.

They further contend that any injuries ‘were proximately caused by the negligence and carelessness of cross-complainant and others, not by Rolls-Royce.’

Wheels Boutique, which performed nearly $90,000 in modifications including body work, wheel installation, and a ‘lowering link’ adjustment, has moved to quash the lawsuit altogether – arguing California courts lack jurisdiction over the Florida shop.

Superior Court Judge Cynthia P. Smith is expected to rule on that motion February 6.

On the same day he sued the automaker, Thomas also moved to strike punitive damages from the women’s lawsuit.

In court filings, his attorneys accused the plaintiffs of ‘taking what is clearly a tragic and unfortunate matter and warping it into a claim of punitive damage,’ calling portions of the complaint ‘inflammatory language with no substance.’

Thomas, originally from Dallas, faces the civil suit over the Napa crash amid a nasty divorce battle with his former wife

Thomas has dodged service of the lawsuit and is ‘hiding behind the gates of his private [Napa] estate in an attempt to avoid responsibility,’ the plaintiff’s attorney told the Daily Mail last year. Pictured is the home associated with Thomas’s last known address

Witnesses said Thomas appeared ‘angry and aggressive’ and was ‘driving his Rolls-Royce as though it were an instrument of intimidation and power,’ according to the lawsuit. Pictured is damage to the restaurant that Thomas allegedly hit with his SUV

They dismissed witness statements describing Thomas as ‘angry,’ claiming he ‘peeled out,’ ‘burned rubber,’ or revved his engine as hearsay.

‘Plaintiffs’ own pleadings state at best a vehicle driven by an older gentleman that somehow sped up and was involved in an accident,’ the memorandum states.

Thomas’ legal team argues punitive damages require proof of malice, oppression, or fraud – a bar they say has not been met.

‘At best, Mr. Thomas’ alleged conduct could perhaps be described as careless, or even reckless, but there is nothing to indicate that it reflected an evil motive to harm people,’ the filing argues.

Attorneys for the injured women sharply disagreed.

In a December 16 court response, they argued that intent to injure is not required for punitive damages, citing allegations that Thomas violated multiple traffic laws, entered an occupied crosswalk, ignored warnings, and drove despite known impairments – including macular degeneration.

Smith sided with the plaintiffs at a December 30 hearing, allowing the punitive damages claim to proceed. A case management conference is scheduled for March 24

The Napa crash unfolded against a backdrop of prior legal disputes involving Thomas, including a prolonged and bitter divorce battle in Texas.

Court records show Thomas was previously accused by his former wife of assault during an argument in their Dallas home – allegations he denied and was ultimately acquitted of at trial.

He later relocated to California, where he lives behind the gates of a multimillion-dollar estate and remains a prominent figure in the global bull terrier breeding world.

In the hours before the Napa crash, the lawsuit alleges Thomas had grown increasingly frustrated while circling downtown streets in search of parking, revving his engine, screeching his tires, and gesturing angrily at pedestrians.

The women’s complaint states his conduct was not accidental.

“Defendant’s conduct was not the result of inattention, distraction, or mistake,” it alleges. “It was the culmination of rage, aggression, and a deliberate disregard for human life.”