Nurse Nicole Linton, who has been charged with six counts of murder, allegedly traveled as fast as 130 MPH before the crash that left five dead in Los Angeles.
Per The Los Angeles Times, initial reports claimed she was traveling at 90 MPH when she crashed her Mercedes-Benz at the La Brea and Slauson avenues intersection on August 4. However, new court documents filed last week indicate that she was driving much faster.
“Further analysis reveals that her speed at impact was in fact 130 MPH and that she floored the gas pedal for at least the 5 seconds leading into the crash, going from 122 MPH to 130 MPH,” reads the court filing. It was also noted that surveillance video and recorded data shows that Linton had "complete control over steering, maintaining the tilt of the steering wheel to keep her car traveling directly toward the crowded intersection." Her attorneys previously claimed she lost consciousness prior to the deadly collision.
The 37-year-old Houston nurse has been charged with six counts of murder and five counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. Among the five victims was Asherey Ryan, who was over 8 months pregnant at the time of the crash. Ryan’s one-year-old child, Alonzo Quntero, and her boyfriend Reynold Lester also died in the crash. The other two killed were 43-year-old Nathesia Lewis and 38-year-old Lynette Noble.
Linton’s attorneys previously filed documents that highlighted her extensive history of mental health issues. They claimed that she had experienced struggles on account of her bipolar disorder, and experienced an “apparent lapse of consciousness” just before the crash. “She has no recollection of the events that led to her collision,” said Dr. William Winter, who treated her at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center following the crash. "The next thing she recalled was lying on the pavement and seeing that her car was on fire.”
Prosecutors have since obtained records that show three previous speeding violations, and two crashes that Linton caused by “exhibiting an ongoing disregard for the safety of others on the road.”
