BMW driver, 23, accused of mowing down four sorority sisters in horror Malibu crash hires hot-shot defense lawyer for murder trial
Fraser Bohm, 23, was arraigned on murder and vehicular manslaughter charges in connection with the October 2023 deaths of Pepperdine University students Asha Weir, Peyton Stewart, Deslyn Williams, all 21, and 20-year-old Niamh Rolston.
Dressed in a dark gray suit and tie, he did not speak as his new lawyer, Alan Jackson, entered the not-guilty pleas to four counts each of charge on his behalf at a courthouse in Van Nuys, California.
The hearing lasted only a few minutes, during which Judge Thomas Rubinson granted the defense's request for a postponement to September 5.
Wednesday's arraignment follows a delay granted last month, when newly-hired Jackson requested a continuance.
Outside the courtroom, Jackson explained that he plans to raise 'several issues' at the next hearing, including filing a motion to reduce Bohm's $4million bail package that was granted after his arrest in 2023.
Asked when he expects Bohm's jury trial to start, the renowned lawyer told Daily Mail: 'The prosecution has a head start on us and we have a lot of work to do to catch up. So I can't see trial starting before the end of 2025.'
The prominent criminal defense attorney, who replaces Bohm's original lawyer Michael Kraut, is a former LA County Assistant District Attorney who prosecuted several high-profile cases, including the murder conviction of music producer Phil Spector.
Since going into private practice, he's made a name for himself as a top defense attorney.
Most recently, he successfully got murder suspect Karen Read acquitted in the widely-covered trial related to the death of Boston Police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe.
All four of the young women killed in the Malibu crash were seniors at Pepperdine's Seaver College of Liberal Arts where they were members of the Alpha Phi Sorority.
They were due to graduate with the class of 2024 and later were awarded their Pepperdine degrees posthumously.
They died when Bohm – driving allegedly at 104mph – crashed into three parked vehicles in the parking lane next to where the girls were walking after getting out of a car on PCH where the speed limit is 45mph.
'They were killed because of the driving of the defendant,' Deputy District Attorney Nathan Bartos told an April preliminary hearing where Bohm was ordered to stand trial.
Bartos pointed out that data retrieved from the 'black box' in the BMW showed that the vehicle accelerated from 93mph to 104mph just two and a half seconds before the crash.
'He consciously decided to get that vehicle up to the speed of 104 miles an hour,' the prosecutor added. 'And he lost control of his vehicle….. This was not an accident.'
Peyton Stewart (left) and Asha Weir were members of Alpha Phi at Pepperdine University - and were pronounced dead alongside their two friends at the scene
Bohm – who lives in Malibu – has maintained that the deadly crash was an accident that happened when 'some guy' in a white car swerved into his lane, hitting his driver's side mirror, causing him to slam into the three parked cars.
And his then defense attorney, Kraut, argued that at the time of the crash, Bohm was being 'chased in a road-rage incident'.
But LA Sheriff's investigators said they found 'no evidence of an alleged road-rage incident.'
At the preliminary hearing, Kraut called Bohm a 'kid', emphasizing that the fatal pile-up occurred on the day after his 22nd birthday and there was 'no evidence of a past history of any driving violations or a parking violation.'
The deadly crash sparked outrage from Malibu residents who have for years been calling for safety improvements to this stretch of PCH between Carbon Canyon and Las Flores Canyon where 53 deaths and 92 serious injuries between 2013 and 2023 earned it the nickname 'Dead Man's Curve.'
On the one-year anniversary of the girls' deaths, Malibu officials met to discuss ways to improve safety and creating a California Highway Patrol Task Force to crack down on speeders and traffic offenders on PCH
And recently, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new bill authorizing the installation of speed cameras on a 21-mile stretch of PCH all the way through the ritzy, celebrity-filled enclave.
The city has also been considering an even more ambitious plan that would completely redesign PCH, 'transforming it from a high speed highway into a safer, community-focused corridor, providing safe access for all users, including pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.'
Such safety measures come too late for the grieving parents of the victims.
They have all brought wrongful death lawsuits against Bohm and are also suing the State of California, LA County, the City of Malibu and the California Coastal Commission, alleging dangerous road design on PCH and lack of safety standards.
Bohm, whose father Chris is an executive at a medical equipment manufacturer, had appeared in court for his arraignment hearing last month – his first court date since he was ordered to stand trial after a three-day preliminary trial in late April.
The former high school athlete, however, did not enter an official plea after his lawyer requested more time.
Daily Mail previously revealed that Bohm had received the luxury vehicle in his parents' divorce settlement on his 18th birthday.
The red 2016 BMW was purchased by Bohm's mother Brooke using a down payment of $25,000 in 2017 – with the remaining installments paid by his dad Chris.
The divorce settlement also revealed details of his family's lavish lifestyle – including the secluded $8.7 million Malibu gated estate Bohm's mother ended up with in the divorce.
His BMW slammed into parked vehicles while the college seniors stood nearby – striking them as well.
All four victims were pronounced dead at the scene, while Bohm was uninjured.
Following the crash, as ambulances took the women's dead bodies from the scene, Bohm was seen sitting on a ledge, bowing his head, next to emergency personnel.
According to witnesses, he had attempted to flee the scene and had to be 'tackled down' and stopped by students from the nearby Pepperdine Sigma Chi fraternity.
Officials said there was a fraternity party being held in the area, and that the victims had been planning to meet up with others at the time of the tragedy.
Niamh, Asha, and Peyton all lived together in college, their social media pages suggested.
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