Bailee Lynn Rios, 36, now faces murder charges after prosecutors say she was high on drugs when her SUV plowed into a Los Angeles Metro bus, killing two passengers and setting off a chain reaction that downed an NBC news helicopter.
The newly surfaced footage captures Rios in the immediate aftermath, her face bloodied and her expression vacant as concerned bystanders rush to her window. Witnesses can be heard asking whether she is alright, but Rios appears too stunned to respond coherently. The video, recorded by someone at the chaotic scene, shows her sitting motionless behind the wheel as debris from the shattered vehicles litters the intersection.
Rios was charged Thursday with two counts of second-degree murder, driving under the influence, and reckless driving, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced. She was allegedly under the influence of drugs at the time of the crash, and investigators found narcotics inside her vehicle. The collision occurred Tuesday in the downtown Los Angeles area during morning rush hour.
The bus passengers who died have not been publicly identified pending notification of family members. Several other bus riders sustained injuries of varying severity in the violent sideswipe impact.
The destruction did not end at the crash site. The Metro bus collision triggered a sequence of events that culminated in the catastrophic crash of an NBC4 news helicopter later that same day. That aircraft went down in a separate incident that killed three additional people: veteran reporter Stu Mundel’s colleague, the pilot, and a pedestrian struck on the ground. The helicopter had been covering the bus crash aftermath when it experienced mechanical failure and plummeted into a downtown street.
Rios remains in custody as the case proceeds through the Los Angeles County criminal justice system. Her arraignment has not yet been scheduled.