A 37-year-old driver of a Mercedes Benz ran a red light, sped through an intersection in Windsor Hills, outside Los Angeles on August 4, and crashed into several vehicles. She was released from Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, after recovering from her injuries, and taken into custody.
On September 12, she was accused of murder, for the deaths of six people, including an unborn child, that she hit when she crashed her Mercedes in her chaotic drive.
Nicole Linton, 37, a traveling nurse from Houston, allegedly put her foot to the pedal and floored it, approaching La Brea and Slauson Avenues at 130 mph.
A California Highway Patrol (CHP) statement said: “While driving the Mercedes, Linton proceeded through a red light and collided into multiple vehicles traveling eastbound and westbound on Slauson Avenue. As a result of this collision, multiple parties were ejected and two vehicles were fully engulfed in flames.”
Linton and her attorneys insist that the woman temporarily lost consciousness, causing her to increase pressure on the pedal. She is being charged with six counts of murder and six counts of manslaughter.
A pregnant woman, Asherey Ryan, her unborn child, her boyfriend, Reynold Lester, and her 11-month-old son died in the crash. They were headed to the doctor for a prenatal checkup when the Mercedes hit them.
Two others were killed in the accident.
Linton’s lawyers tried to explain her behavior with medical proof that showed she had bipolar disorder and an “apparent lapse of consciousness” at the time of the crash.
Her attorneys said she had no criminal record or history of reckless driving. They said she should be hospitalized in a mental health facility. Prior to her September 12 hearing and murder charges, she was in jail without bail, awaiting her hearing.
“Mental incapacitation and unconsciousness are, of course, complete defenses to crimes under California law,” Linton’s attorneys note.
Prosecutors rejected the claim that Linton lost consciousness and said that surveillance video and computer recordings from her car indicate that she had control over the steering and rode directly into a crowded intersection.
