Los Angeles District Attorney Announces Additional Legal Action in Fatal Crash
By Dolores Quintana
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón has officially announced the charging of Fraser Bohm in connection with a fatal car crash that resulted in the tragic deaths of four Pepperdine University students in Malibu, Niamh Rolston, Peyton Stewart, Asha Weir, and Deslyn Williams.
District Attorney Gascón expressed his condolences, stating, “Our hearts go out to the families, loved ones, and the Pepperdine University community as they grapple with this unfathomable loss. Today, we stand in profound sorrow for the loss of four innocent lives taken in a senseless incident. We want to assure the community of our unwavering commitment to seeking justice for those who were prematurely taken from us.”
Fraser Michael Bohm, born on October 16, 2001, faces charges in case LA100189, including four counts of murder and four counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. During an arraignment held today in Department 100 of the Van Nuys Courthouse, Bohm entered a not-guilty plea to all charges. The court reduced the previously established bail of $8 million to $4 million during the arraignment.
Bohm’s defense lawyer, Michael Kraut, claimed to have evidence that his client’s excessive rate of speed, which he claims was actually near 70 miles per hour, was due to being chased during a road rage incident that started near Duke’s Malibu restaurant.
KTLA quotes Kraut, who said, “We have evidence that the Sheriff’s Department did not want to take that clearly shows that there was a road rage incident that started at Duke’s, that this person chased him and tried to push him off the side of the road. And when he accelerated to get away from him, that’s when the accident occurred.”
On Tuesday, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jim Arens was quoted by ABC 7 News during a press conference, and he said that there was no evidence that a road rage incident had anything to do with the crash.
The incident occurred on October 17 when Bohm allegedly drove at an excessive speed of 104 miles an hour in a 45 miles-per-hour zone on the 21600 block of Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. Eyewitnesses reported that he lost control of his vehicle, leading to a collision with parked vehicles and striking four pedestrians who were standing alongside the road. Tragically, all four pedestrians died at the scene of the accident.
If found guilty as charged, Bohm could face the possibility of receiving multiple life sentences. The investigation into this case was carried out by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
