The closely watched trial of Fraser Bohm, the 24-year-old son of a wealthy Malibu family accused of killing four Pepperdine University students while allegedly speeding in his BMW along a famed California coastal road, has been pushed into new uncertainty after prosecutors raised questions about a 12-pound nitrous oxide tank reportedly discovered in the vehicle.
Bohm appeared in court Wednesday alongside his prominent defense lawyer, Alan Jackson, who urged the judge to delay the start of the trial so the defense could examine and test the nitrous oxide canister recovered after the deadly crash.
The long-anticipated case had been set to begin next week.
Wearing a gray suit and blue tie, with his hair noticeably tousled, Bohm sat in court as Judge Thomas Rubinson described prosecutors’ latest theory: that the 10- to 12-pound tank may have been sitting on Bohm’s lap when the crash occurred, potentially diverting his attention behind the wheel.
“The canister was a canister of nitrous oxide. A 10 or 12 pound tank with pressurized gas in it is distracting,” Rubinson said during the hearing.
Nitrous oxide, sometimes misused recreationally for a brief but intense high that can impair a person’s ability to function, is now part of the prosecution’s case theory. Prosecutors, however, are not planning to argue that Bohm was inhaling from the tank at the time.
Jackson told the court the defense needs additional time to respond to the newly introduced nitrous oxide issue, saying the initial review alone could take three to four weeks. That process, he said, would include inspecting the canister, reviewing its chain of custody, and analyzing swabs from the tank, which reportedly had blood on it when it was recovered.
The defense attorney then requested that the trial be moved to January 2027, citing a series of other trials already scheduled to begin in October. Rubinson appeared skeptical, asking, “why do those trials go ahead of this one?”
“Something catastrophic will happen,” Jackson answered and then asked for a private meeting with Rubinson in chambers. When the parties emerged, a trial start date of December 1st was announced.
Bohm faces murder and vehicular manslaughter charges for mowing down Niamh Rolston, 20, Peyton Stewart, 21, Asha Weir, 21, and Deslyn Williams, 21, while doing over 100 mph in Malibu on Oct. 17, 2023.
Prosecutors said the Malibu resident was allegedly doing 104 mph on a notoriously dangerous 45-mph stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway when he lost control of his luxury car and slammed into three parked cars, which then struck the four Alpha Phi sorority sisters walking nearby.
The victims, seniors at the liberal arts college, all died at the scene.
Jackson was asked by The Post why there was a tank of nitrous in Bohm’s car after Wednesday’s hearing. The famed lawyer, who once prosecuted music mogul Phil Spector, wouldn’t comment.
Bohm’s legal team recently moved to dismiss the murder charges, arguing he lost control of the car and therefore shouldn’t be held criminally liable for murder.
Bohm has been free on 4 million dollars bail since the accident occurred, nearly three years ago.
