VAN NUYS (CNS) – The driver who was allegedly speeding when he crashed into multiple parked vehicles on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu in 2023 — killing four Pepperdine University sorority sisters — is due in court Monday for a hearing to determine if there is sufficient evidence for him to stand trial on four murder charges.
Fraser Michael Bohm, now 23, of Malibu, is set to appear in a Van Nuys courtroom Monday morning to begin what is expected to be a multi-day hearing.
He is charged with four counts of murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence in the Oct. 17, 2023, nighttime crash that killed Niamh Rolston, 20; Peyton Stewart, 21; Asha Weir, 21; and Deslyn Williams, 21.
All four victims were seniors at Pepperdine’s Seaver College of Liberal Arts and members of the Alpha Phi sorority. They were set to graduate with Pepperdine’s class of 2024, and received their degrees posthumously.
The four were strolling along PCH, headed for an evening event, when the tragedy occurred.
Then-Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón said shortly after the crash that Bohm was driving his BMW at 104 mph in a 45 mph zone — an allegation that Bohm’s defense attorney disputes. Bohm’s attorney also has contended that Bohm was the victim of a road-rage incident and was being chased, and was forced off the road.
Sheriff’s officials said Bohm swerved onto the north shoulder of westbound PCH and slammed into at least three vehicles parked alongside on the roadway. Those parked vehicles struck the four Pepperdine students, leaving them dead at the scene, according to the sheriff’s department.
That section of PCH — a short stretch between Las Flores Canyon and Carbon Canyon roads — is known as “Dead Man’s Curve” and reportedly has seen the highest number of auto accidents on the overall 21-mile coastal road.
The tragedy prompted numerous calls to remedy the dangers and minimize speeds along that section of PCH. No safeguards were in place for pedestrians at the crash scene, even though the city has known about the dangers for decades, lawyers for the students’ parents say.
Gascón said in 2023 that Bohm was “allegedly speeding at speeds of 104 miles an hour in a 45-mile-per hour zone when he lost control of his BMW,” explaining that the murder charges were filed because of “the speed, the reckless disregard for the safety of others.”
Bohm has remained free since posting $4 million bail on Oct. 27, 2023. His bail was initially set at $8 million, but was subsequently reduced to $4 million during his initial appearance in a Van Nuys courtroom.
Defense attorney Michael Kraut had asked Judge Eric Harmon to reduce Bohm’s bail to $400,000, contending his client was a victim of road rage. Kraut also said there was no evidence to support Gascón’s claim that Bohm was driving at 104 mph.
“He used numbers like my client was at 104 miles per hour at the time of the crash,” Kraut said. “The evidence clearly shows that didn’t happen.”
The defense attorney said the maximum speed at the time of impact was 70 mph based on witness statements, his client’s statement and the black box inside the BMW.
In addition, Kraut accused sheriff’s investigators of refusing to answer phone calls and emails from the defense and rushing to file the case without proper investigation. Kraut said it took the defense only a couple of days to obtain a video that corroborated his client’s version of what happened that night.
“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 (then) 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,” the defense attorney said.
As Kraut told reporters, “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.
“At the stoplight at Duke’s, he had been stopped and was texting a friend to tell him he was coming there and the guy next to him began to become irate. That person then gave chase to my client. My client continued at a regular speed as the … black box shows. And then the other person came in his lane and started pushing him. That person then made contact with my client’s car.”
Bohm’s attorney said that video shows his client “pulling away from this guy as he pushed him and my client went into the other lane and then begins to stop.”
Sheriff’s Sgt. Jim Arens told reporters at the time there was “no evidence” the crash stemmed from an alleged road-rage incident.
Bohm could face multiple life prison sentences if convicted as charged, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
On Oct. 17, 2024 — the one-year anniversary of the tragedy — the city of Malibu discussed at a news conference initiatives to improve safety along PCH — including new legislation authorizing speed cameras at five critical locations; and increased enforcement efforts, including the creation of a Malibu CHP Task Force and collaborative operations with the sheriff’s department.
There also are moves underway to redesign PCH. According to the city of Malibu, the long-term plan will “transform PCH from a high-speed highway into a safer, community-focused corridor, providing safe access for all users, including pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.”
In March 2024, Pepperdine announced a scholarship in honor of victims – – the “Our Four Angels Endowed Scholarship.”
The case has also prompted civil litigation.
The parents of the four students are suing the state, Caltrans, the California Coastal Commission, Los Angeles County and Malibu.
The separately filed Santa Monica Superior Court lawsuits contend that all of those entities share liability for the allegedly dangerous roadway design on that portion of PCH, and for not implementing life-saving safety measures.
A sheriff’s captain reported that, from 2013-23, there were 53 deaths and 92 serious injuries in the area, and that attempts to improve conditions through law enforcement have had minimal or temporary results, according to the suits.
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