An ex-star high school baseball player was barreling down the Pacific Coast Highway at over 100 mph in Malibu last week when he killed four Pepperdine University sorority sisters, Los Angeles prosecutors allege.
Fraser Bohm, 22, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to four counts each of malice murder and vehicular manslaughter for the deaths of Niamh Rolston, Peyton Stewart, Asha Weir and Deslyn Williams.
Bohm was allegedly speeding at 104 mph in a 45 mph zone on the stretch of freeway known as "Dead Man's Curve" for the high number of fatal accidents there, the prosecutor told Judge Diego Edber.
In an interview with detectives after the wreck, Bohm allegedly admitted that he might have been texting when he crashed.
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Prosecutor Nathan Bartos said in Los Angeles Superior Court that Bohm knew the neighborhood has a high concentration of homes and businesses and disregarded the risks when he flew down the freeway at more than twice the speed limit.
Bohm's attorney, Michael Kraut, said his client was texting at a stop sign when another driver started yelling at him. Bohm, he said, accelerated to escape the irate driver who ultimately caused him to veer off the road. Kraut said they identified that driver but claimed investigators weren't interested.
"This case was rushed without getting all the facts," Kraut said, as Bohm stood behind a door deliberately standing out of the view of news cameras.
Kraut insisted that Bohm was only going 70 mph at the point of impact.
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The attorney added that his client wasn't under the influence of drugs or alcohol and has no previous traffic violations – not even a speeding ticket. Kraut argued for low bail.
But the judge disagreed. "The facts of this case are extremely egregious," Edber said, setting bail at $4 million.
Kraut pushed again for a lower figure, arguing that Bohm's family would rather give that money to the victims for funeral costs. Edber reluctantly agreed to conduct a bail review on Thursday.
Bohm has been in custody since his arrest Tuesday. If Bohm posts bail, he's barred from driving.
The gruesome collision unfolded Oct. 17 about 8:30 p.m. when Bohm lost control of his BMW, slammed into a row of cars then hit the Seaver College School of the Arts students, according to the Los Angeles Sheriff's Office.
The young women were declared dead at the scene.
The former high school baseball prospect, who played for the Oaks Christian School, was initially arrested at the scene for gross vehicular manslaughter, but the charges were dropped to give detectives time to build their case, the sheriff's office said in a statement.
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Bohm lives with his mom in a $8.7 million Malibu estate, which is currently listed for sale and has sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean.
The 2016 BMW Bohm was driving when he allegedly killed the four young women was a gift for his 18th birthday, according to a 2018 divorce agreement.
His mother, Brooke Bohm, made a $25,000 down payment for the vehicle and the remaining installments were to be paid by his father, Chris Bohm, who works for a medical technology company, according to the couple's settlement.
The car was to be transferred to Bohm when he officially became an adult, the records show. The family also owns a $700,000 vacation home in Palm Desert in the Coachella Valley.
Rolston, 20, a Los Angeles native, and Stewart, 21, were business majors at Pepperdine, according to their LinkedIn profiles. Rolston was also a talented gymnast.
Weir, 21, of Harleysville, Pennsylvania, was pursuing a degree in English. It wasn't immediately clear what Williams, 21, was studying.
The Lost Hills Sheriff's Station is urging anyone with information to contact the Traffic Investigations Office at 818-878-1808. Tips can also be provided anonymously by contacting Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
Julia Bonavita contributed to this report.
