PORTLAND, Ore. (Portland Tribune) — A $10 million wrongful death lawsuit filed on behalf of a Gresham woman alleges she was killed by a drunken driver who had been over-served by several Portland bars and an underage friend.
Elena Davkina had just finished a shift as a nursing assistant at Portland Adventist Medical Center and was driving home when she was killed in a crash around 3:45 a.m. on August 12, 2019, according to the suit. The 48-year-old left behind a husband, Dimtrii, and four children — aged 4, 13, 18 and 20 — at the time of her death.
“Elena Davkina was a physician who immigrated from Russia in 2014 with her husband and children to have freedom and a better life in the United States,” per the suit, which was filed March 15 in Multnomah County Circuit Court.
Zodiac Power Clark, then 22, has entered not guilty pleas for all charges filed: second-degree manslaughter, driving under the influence of intoxicants and reckless driving. The criminal case, which is separate from the civil suit, has been postponed multiple times.
Court documents claim Clark, a former Evergreen college student, had finished a shift as a Pizzicotta delivery driver and told police at the crash scene he had been drinking with friends before piloting his 1997 Acura RL sedan on eastbound Southeast Division Street against the light into the intersection with 112th Avenue, where he struck the side of Davkina’s 2020 Toyota Corolla.
A probable cause affidavit says a breathalyzer test registered Clark’s blood-alcohol content at .13%, though the civil suit claims it was actually .162%.
Davkina suffered “blunt force trauma to her abdomen and chest, liver laceration, hemorrhagic shock and cardiac arrest” and was declared dead at OHSU shortly after the crash, the suit says. Police allege Clark walked away from the crash unharmed.
“I’m just so stupid, I just ran the red light,” police claim Clark said.
The civil suit alleges Clark, 22, and friends, some of whom were underage, gathered at Dots Cafe and bar, 2521 S.E. Clinton St., where Clark was served despite appearing “visibly intoxicated.”
Dots Cafe co-owner Eli Johnson strongly denied the allegations, saying the underage friends used fake IDs to obtain alcohol, and that the company was cleared of wrongdoing during a subsequent OLCC investigation.
“We have sworn testimony by his friends that he was not visibly intoxicated while at the bar. They are now changing their stories,” said Johnson. “We followed all protocols.”
They then allegedly traveled to Chopsticks bar, 3390 N.E. Sandy Blvd., where they were once again allegedly served despite being visible intoxicated.
After that, the group traveled to the home of Carl and Jodi Landre, where Clark’s was allegedly provided alcohol by underage friend Bija Reynolds, the suit claims.
“After Clark became severely intoxicated, he was dropped off at his car, which was parked near Dots Cafe,” the suit says.
Clark, Reynolds, Dots Cafe, Chopsticks, and the Landres are all named as defendants in the $10 million negligence suit, which was filed by Dimtrii Davkin on behalf of his wife’s estate.
Davkin’s lawyer, Hala J. Gores, was traveling and could not immediately be reached for comment. Representatives for Chopsticks and Clark’s criminal lawyer did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Contact information for Reynolds and the Landres was not immediately available.