Family members of the victims stormed out of a Los Angeles courtroom Tuesday as prosecutors showed graphic video of a fetus during opening statements in the trial of Nicole Linton.
Linton, a traveling nurse from Houston, Texas, faces six counts of murder and five counts of vehicular manslaughter for the Aug. 4, 2022 crash at La Brea and Slauson avenues that killed five people and an unborn child. She has pleaded not guilty and remains jailed without bail.
Prosecutor Brittany Vannoy told jurors that Linton killed six people when she drove her Mercedes at 130 miles per hour through a red light and into a crowd of vehicles and pedestrians. Video footage showed the Mercedes smashing into multiple vehicles before exploding into a fireball.
Vannoy described the death of Asherey Ryan, who was eight months pregnant and on her way to a prenatal appointment when the crash occurred. “The baby was ripped from her womb,” Vannoy said in court.
A witness at the scene saw “a little baby flying over her head and lying at her feet,” Vannoy added, as images of the unborn child were displayed for the jury.
Family members cried uncontrollably in the gallery as the images appeared, leading relatives to rush out of court. Clips from the scene also showed bystanders trying to put out the flames engulfing the wreckage.
Ryan’s 11-month-old son Alonzo and her boyfriend Reynold Lester also died in the collision. The family had been headed to the prenatal appointment together.
Linton’s defense team has pointed to a history of seizures in her frontal lobe as the cause of her actions. A neurologist hired by her attorneys said these seizures caused bizarre behaviors.
Prosecutors counter that a psychiatric evaluation showed no indication Linton suffered a seizure while driving. They allege she “floored” her car for at least five seconds before reaching speeds of 122 to 130 mph prior to impact.
The crash became one of the most horrific traffic incidents in Los Angeles history, with multiple vehicles destroyed and flames visible for blocks. Bystanders rushed to help but were unable to control the inferno.
Linton’s legal team has not publicly disputed her speed or the sequence of impacts, focusing instead on her mental state and medical history as the central question for jurors.
The trial is expected to continue with witness testimony and additional video evidence as both sides present their cases to the jury.