Attorneys for the nurse accused of causing the Windsor Hills crash that killed five denied Monday that their client has an extensive history of car accidents.
“It’s been reported extensively and it’s not true,” said Halim Dhanidina, who represents Nicole Lorraine Linton, a travel nurse who was working at Kaiser Permanente’s West Los Angeles Medical Center before the Aug. 4 crash.
“Our initial investigation has demonstrated that that allegation that’s been bandied about in the media is patently false,” Dhanidina said about the claim that Linton was involved in 13 other crashes before the Windsor Hills one.
Linton was set to have a hearing over her bail on Monday, but her attorneys asked a judge to postpone it for another two weeks so that they could continue investigating and preparing.
Linton is currently being held without bail at the Century Regional Detention Center and did not come to court for the brief hearing Monday.
“All things considered, she’s trying to keep her chin up and is anxiously awaiting further resolution in court,” Dhanidina told The Times outside the courtroom.
Linton is charged with six counts of murder and five counts of manslaughter in the crash. She is accused of driving her Mercedes-Benz around 90 mph down La Brea Avenue toward Slauson Avenue, and then barreling into numerous cars, setting them on fire.
Five people died, including a pregnant woman. Prosecutors levied a murder charge against Linton for the death of the unborn child.
The crash was caught on surveillance video.
Asherey Ryan, 23, was killed along with her boyfriend, Reynold Lester, her 11-month-old child, Alonzo Quintero, and her unborn child. Two women in another car, Nathesia Lewis, 42, and Lynette Noble, 38, were also killed.
The Times was able to find records of at least two crashes that Linton was previously involved in. In 2013, she did not accelerate at a green light in Laredo, Texas, and was rear-ended, according to Texas Department of Transportation data. In 2016, the same thing happened in Houston. She was not at fault in either of those crashes.
She is due back in court Aug. 31.