Source: The movements, the mentality and the medications of the driver…
Found on: 2022-08-11 15:05:04
CHP officers at the Windsor Hills crash scene. A Mercedes that authorities say was driven by Nicole Lorraine Linton is in the background. (Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)
Authorities investigating the Windsor Hills crash that left five dead are trying to resolve the actions and mindset of the nurse who prosecutors say threw her Mercedes into the intersection.
Investigators are still trying to get a full account of what Nicole Lorena Linton37 brought to the corner of Slauson and La Brea avenues Thursday afternoon.
Linton, who has been charged with multiple counts of murder and vehicular manslaughter, was speeding at more than 90 mph as he approached the busy intersection, authorities said.
The Mercedes did not appear to slow down before running a red light shortly after 1:30 p.m. The light had been red for nine seconds before the car went through the intersection and collided with multiple cars, prosecutors said.
Linton, whose permanent address is in Texas, had been working as a traveling nurse at a Kaiser hospital in West Los Angeles and lived near the health care center on La Cienega Boulevard. Authorities believe she drove to Windsor Hills from the hospital but aren’t sure why she was driving so recklessly, the sources told The Times.
There are about four miles between the hospital and the scene of the deadly crash, and investigators are trying to determine if Linton was working a shift at the time of Thursday’s collision.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon said there is no evidence of any alcohol consumption by Linton at this time.
In court Monday, Linton’s attorney, Halim Dhanidina, asked to continue his arraignment until October because he is reviewing his out-of-state history of “documented profound mental health issues.” Dhanidina did not elaborate on those issues, but said the Windsor Hills crash could be related to them.
Authorities are trying to determine if Linton was supposed to be on medication and was using it at the time of the crash, according to law enforcement sources who spoke anonymously because the investigation is ongoing.
At least six vehicles were involved in the crash, according to California Highway Patrol investigators. In addition to the fatalities, eight people were injured.
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Impact of the ferocious crash killed 23-year-old Asherey Ryan; her 11-month-old son, Alonso Quintero; her boyfriend, Reynold Lester; and her unborn child. Ryan was eight and a half months pregnant when she was killed. The child she was carrying was named Armani Lester, according to the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.
Two additional women who died in the crash have yet to be identified.
Linton was hospitalized with moderate injuries for several days before being taken into police custody.
Law enforcement sources say Linton was involved in 13 previous accidents before Thursday’s deadly crash.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.