Former toms river councilman springs drunk driver who killed beloved ocean county restaurateur

TOMS RIVER, NJ—Robert Popovics was a beloved community member in Ocean County. His family owned the popular Shady Rest restaurant in Bayville, and he was an avid fisherman well-respected in the shore area’s tight-knit fishing community.

He was struck by a drunk driver in September and critically injured. Despite fighting for his life, Popovics passed away. Now, the woman who killed him is facing a vehicular homicide charge.

She was taken into custody, but set free under New Jersey’s bail reform law by criminal defense attorney Terrance Turnbach, a former Democrat councilman in Toms River. Turnbach argues his client suffered a medical episode that contributed to the crash, not her blood alcohol level, which was twice the state’s legal limit.

A Seaside Park woman accused of a fatal hit-and-run that killed her boss, Robert S. Popovics, was released from jail Wednesday pending her trial. Genell A. Mcinaw was ordered not to drive or consume excessive alcohol as part of her pretrial release conditions, according to Judge Wendel Daniels. Mcinaw, who worked for Popovics, a well-known fly fisherman and restaurant owner, faces multiple charges in connection with the incident.

The charges against Mcinaw escalated following Popovics’ death, which occurred after the initial Sept. 23 incident in Seaside Heights. Originally charged with leaving the scene of an accident causing serious injury, she now faces counts of vehicular homicide, strict liability vehicular homicide, and knowingly leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death. Prosecutors allege that Popovics suffered severe injuries that might have been mitigated if Mcinaw had stopped and called for help.

During a detention hearing, Assistant Prosecutor Emily Grimaldi argued against Mcinaw’s release, citing public safety concerns. Grimaldi emphasized that Mcinaw left the scene despite knowing she had struck a pedestrian, who was later found with grave injuries. Grimaldi also noted Mcinaw’s alleged lack of accountability, as she claimed to have experienced a medical episode at the time of the crash, though lab results showed her blood alcohol concentration was .187, more than double the legal limit.

Defense attorney Terrance Turnbach argued that Mcinaw intends to face the charges and has cooperated with legal proceedings. Judge Daniels ultimately decided that Mcinaw’s compliance with previous conditions supported her release, with monitoring measures in place. “She has no pending charges…[and] she’s never failed to appear,” Daniels said, affirming that conditions were sufficient to ensure her cooperation moving forward.

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