Driver who fatally struck 4 Pepperdine sorority sisters was being chased after road rage clash, attorney claims
The driver charged with the murder of four Pepperdine University sorority sisters who were mowed down at more than 100 mph claims he was being chased after an earlier road rage clash, according to his attorney.
Fraser Bohm’s attorney, Michael Kraut, claims there is video footage proving that the 22-year-old driver was involved in a clash at Duke’s Malibu, a popular bar about 3 miles from the deadly crash last week on the Pacific Coast Highway.
He claimed it was enough to prove that the four murder charges should be dropped because Bohm was merely trying to escape danger when he slammed into Peyton Stewart, Niamh Rolston, Asha Weird, and Deslyn Williams.
“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,” Kraut told KTLA.
“And when he accelerated to get away from him, that’s when the accident occurred.”
Bohm said he’s identified the alleged road-rage driver, without elaborating to the outlet.
“We’ve actually been able to track down who this person is, and the person who admitted to a family member that they did drive him off the road,” Kraut said.
However, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office maintained that it does not have evidence to support the road rage claim.
Bohm appeared in court Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to four counts of murder of the four Pepperdine seniors.
Prosecutors said he was doing 104 mph in a 45 mph zone while texting on his phone when he lost control of his BMW and smashed into three parked cars, which then crashed into the four college students walking along a dangerous stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway.
The women all died at the scene. Two other people were injured.
Bohm walked away from the crash unscathed and was initially charged with gross vehicular manslaughter, and initially released while investigators gathered additional evidence, including a toxicology report, speed analysis, and execution of search warrants.
The murder charges against Bohm were filed Monday, with Los Angeles County DA George Gascon saying that the 22-year-old deliberately acted “with conscious disregard for human life.”
Bohm’s lawyer challenged the prosecution’s account, including the speed, claiming that the BMW’s “black box” would show he was driving closer to 70 mph. He did not address the allegation Brohm was texting at the time.
Bohm’s bail was initially set at $8 million, but a judge has since slashed it by half to $4 million. His lawyer now wants that amount reduced even further.
The 22-year-old is due back in court later Thursday for a bail review hearing.
