The young driver who was allegedly speeding when he allegedly smashed into multiple vehicles in Malibu was let out on bail Saturday. The crash resulted in the deaths of four Pepperdine University students.
Court records indicated that Fraser Michael Bohm, 22, was let out of jail last Friday, but he was re-arrested on Tuesday after a felony complaint was filed. Bohm was charged with four counts of murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence in connection with a car crash that took place on October 17, according to CBS News.
The victims who were killed in the accident were Niamh Rolston, 20, Peyton Stewart, 21, Asha Weir, 21, and Deslyn Williams, 21, all of whom were seniors at Pepperdine.
While Bohm’s bail was initially set at $8 million, it was reduced to $4 million after he appeared in court. Defense attorney Michael Kraut has pushed for the bail to be reduced to $400,000, arguing that his client was the victim of road rage, according to the report.
The New York Post reported that District Attorney George Gascon said during a Wednesday news conference that Bohm had been speeding at 104 mph in a 45 mph zone when he eventually lost control of the BMW he was driving.
However, Kraut argued that there was no evidence to support the claim that Bohm was speeding at 104 miles per hour. “He [Gascon] used numbers like my client was at 104 miles per hour at the time of the crash. The evidence clearly shows that didn’t happen.”
Kraut went on to say that based on witness testimony, Bohm could not have been traveling at a speed more than 70 miles per hour.
“Had they done their job, which is to listen to the witnesses and test their credibility before running out and filing murder charges on a 22-year-old with zero record, zero points, no speeding tickets and somebody who’s been totally law-abiding, we wouldn’t be here with murder charges,” Kraut added. “There’d be somebody else standing here.”
“My client was picking up tacos for a friend. There was no drugs, no alcohol, nothing that he had consumed, no smoking of marijuana. He picked up the tacos and was headed north.”
Even though Kraut claimed that Bohm’s speeding was due to road rage, Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Jim Arens said that there was no evidence that Bohm was the victim of an alleged road rage incident.
If Bohm is ultimately convicted of the charges, he could face multiple life sentences, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
4 Pepperdine students killed in Malibu identifiedwww.youtube.com
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