A traveling nurse from Texas is facing multiple counts of murder after allegedly running a red light and crashing into traffic while driving at 90 mph in Windsor Hills, California.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced Monday that Nicole Linton has been charged with six counts of murder and five counts of vehicular manslaughter in the multi-car crash that left six people dead and Linton faces up to 90 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
Police say Linton was speeding in a Mercedes Thursday when he ran a red light at the intersection of La Brea and Slauson avenues. Multiple vehicles were hit and three of them were engulfed in flames in what authorities called “a burning wreck.”
Linton, of Houston, is a traveling nurse who was working in Los Angeles when the accident happened. Authorities are investigating whether drugs or alcohol were a factor.
Asherey Ryan, 23, who was more than 8 months pregnant, her 11-month-old baby, Alonzo Quintero, and her boyfriend, Reynold Lester, died in the crash. The couple were on their way to a doctor’s appointment when the accident happened.
Two other women, who have not yet been identified, died in another vehicle.
Six other vehicles were involved in the collision, including five people with minor injuries in an SUV and another driver in another vehicle.
Linton, 37, was seen in tears and in a wheelchair during her first court appearance at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center on Monday. Her brows furrowed as tears streamed down her face, her left arm wrapped in a curtsey. He nodded as a judge denied his attorney’s request for $300,000 bail.
“Today, we begin the process to hold accountable the person responsible for the death of six people, including a pregnant woman, and their families,” Prosecutor Gascón said in a statement.
The case remains under investigation by the California Highway Patrol.