SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A man accused of killing four people while driving drunk took the stand during his trial Wednesday and said the crash was unavoidable.

Roberto Vellanoweth, 64, faces up to 18 years in prison if convicted of charges stemming from the March 2007 wreck on South Land Park Drive in south Sacramento.

An emotional Vellanoweth, who faces manslaughter and drunken driving charges, cried while testifying and said the wreck was "nobody's fault."

The defense began the day with a series of questions seemingly designed to establish Vellanoweth's ties to the community.

Vellanoweth, a prominent local Republican, in the past worked for the state and was an appointee of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Vellanoweth has admitted to having three martinis while eating lunch at the Distillery prior to the crash.

He also drank what he thought was a non-alcoholic cocktail, a horchata drink, at Camino Real Restaurant on Broadway.

Vellanoweth said the owner of the restaurant told him it was a virgin kamikaze, and that although he didn't taste any alcohol in it, he wasn't entirely sure what it contained.

Police said Vellanoweth had a blood alcohol content of 0.16 percent, or twice the legal limit, following the wreck.

Vellanoweth said he was headed south on South Land Park Drive when he saw a car driving erratically, then made a split-second decision to speed up to avoid hitting it. He said it was a defensive maneuver he'd learned in a driving course.

When a prosecutor asked him, "You didn't have time to think about braking, but you had time to think about accelerating?" Vellanoweth answered, "Yes."

"The decision will haunt me until I die," Vellanoweth said in reference about why he chose to accelerate.

The defendant said both cars swerved to avoid each other.

"I remember a big flash of light, then I believe I passed out," Vellanoweth said.

He said he remembers waking up in the hospital and a woman, who was a chaplain, told him about the deaths. Vellanoweth said she told him she hoped he would not commit suicide.

"I told the chaplain to share my condolences and sympathies with the families, I know it's not about me, its about them," Vellanoweth said.

Justin Sylva, a paramedic who earlier testified on behalf of the defense, said during a cross-examination that Vellanoweth had a "heavy odor of alcohol" and was "extremely uncooperative" after the crash to the point that medical staff was unable to set an IV in his arm.

Police have testified that on the day of the crash Vellanoweth was handcuffed to a gurney and refused to submit to a blood alcohol test.

Neuropsychologist Dr. Myla Young said in court on Monday that Vellanoweth "suffered a traumatic brain injury" at the time of the crash.

Young said testing shows Vellanoweth displayed strange behavior after the crash because of head trauma.

When Young was cross-examined on Tuesday, she admitted that Vellanoweth's strange behavior might have been caused by intoxication, as well as by a head injury.

Another defense witness said as he was driving down Freeport Boulevard that day, he saw the victims' car run two red lights before the crash. He later recognized the car after he saw the wreckage. The man said he was so disturbed by the reckless driving that he called police to report the driver before the crash happened.

Shanice Patrice Carter, Brittanya Metchelle Nash, Brizchelle Ta'Corra Rice and Rice's 19-month-old son Kamall Dino Savant Osby were killed in the crash.

The trial will continue next week.