Fraser Bohm murder trial delayed as prosecutors introduce new distracted-driving theory

By Judy Abel · Thu Sep 10 2026

Nearly three years after four Pepperdine students were killed in a high-speed crash on Pacific Coast Highway, the long-awaited murder trial of Malibu resident Fraser Bohm has been postponed three months to Dec. 1, as his defense seeks additional time to address a new prosecution theory involving distracted driving. Bohm, 24, faces four counts of murder and four counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence in connection with the 2023 deaths. His trial had been scheduled to begin Sept. 8, but a Superior Court judge granted the defense a continuance Sept. 2, citing scheduling conflicts involving Bohm’s lead defense attorney, Alan Jackson, as well as the defense’s request for more time to examine new evidence — including a large nitrous oxide canister allegedly recovered from Bohm’s vehicle.

Jackson originally asked for a continuance into January 2027, in a motion filed on Aug. 25 citing his busy trial schedule. However, on Aug. 26, Jackson, speaking about the upcoming Bohm trial on the video podcast “Hot Mics with Billy Bush,” stated he was “fully prepared to battle that,” and claimed he had “been preparing for months and months and months for this trial.” In a pretrial hearing in Van Nuys, Wednesday, Sept. 2, less than a week before the trial was to begin, Judge Thomas Rubinson pushed back, questioning why Jackson could not move his other cases, emphasizing that the Bohm case has already been pending for nearly three years, asking “Why do those trials go ahead of this one?” Rubinson also noted Wednesday that the case has been before him for 392 days. The matter was previously assigned to Judge Diego H. Edber beginning in 2024.

After a private meeting in chambers with both lead attorneys, Rubinson announced the new Dec. 1 trial date. Before a jury is seated, the judge has scheduled additional pretrial proceedings before the newly scheduled December trial. The next hearing is set for Sept. 9 at the Van Nuys Courthouse, followed by additional proceedings scheduled for Sept. 16 and Nov. 4.

In his motion for continuance, Jackson also claimed the defense was unprepared to begin trial this month due to new evidence. That new evidence was reportedly introduced by prosecutors back on July 22 and centers around a new prosecution theory that, in addition to excessive speed, the crash was caused by distracted driving.

The prosecution is expected to introduce evidence in court that a 10- to 12-pound canister of nitrous oxide was found in Bohm’s car at the crash site and that the recovered canister had blood stains on it connected with injuries Bohm may have suffered in the crash. They are not expected to allege that Bohm was inhaling from the tank leading up to the collision, but that having a large tank of pressurized gas, perhaps on his lap while driving, distracted him.

During the court appearance last Wednesday with Bohm in attendance, Jackson requested more time, three or four weeks, to review this new theory, inspect the canister, review its chain of custody, and to swab and analyze blood stains allegedly found on the tank. When a reporter outside the courthouse Sept. 2 questioned Jackson about the nitrous oxide and why it was found in Bohm’s car he declined to answer.

The criminal case against Bohm has also gone through several significant legal challenges. Earlier this year, Bohm’s defense sought review by the California Supreme Court after previous efforts to challenge the murder charges were rejected. The state Supreme Court denied Bohm’s petition for review and his request for a stay, leaving the murder charges in place. Another ruling in July represented another defeat for the defense’s effort to eliminate the murder counts before trial.

Bohm, now 24, is accused of running down Pepperdine seniors Niamh Rolston, Peyton Stewart, Asha Weir, and Deslyn Williams on Oct. 17, 2023, on Pacific Coast Highway. Prosecutors allege he was driving at speeds up to 104 mph when he lost control of his car and careened into parked cars at the shoulder where the victims were standing, killing them instantly.

The highway safety and advocacy group for the four victims, Justice For Four Angels, posted online their disappointment in the trial’s postponement. One of the group’s cofounders said the continued delays come at the expense of the victims’ families.

Bohm has pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains free on $4 million bond.