Despite having a “profound” history of mental illness and having been involved in 13 prior collisions, the travelling ICU nurse who killed six people on Thursday in a horrifying crash in Los Angeles after slamming her Mercedes 90 mph through a congested intersection was still somehow subcontracted to work in a hospital and allowed to drive.
As a consequence of the accident on Thursday, Nicole Lorraine Linton, 37, is now being held on six murder charges.
Asherey Ryan, 23, who was pregnant, her 1-year-old son Alonzo, and Reynold Lester, the father of Asherey’s unborn child, were among those she murdered.
Craig Pitchford was added to the list of victims on Tuesday.
There are still two unidentified female victims.
Linton, a contractor at the Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles Hospital, comes from Houston, Texas, and was previously in Los Angeles.
She joined the nurse contractor company AMN Healthcare in October 2020, where she was employed.
Concerning Linton’s qualifications, AMN Healthcare did not react to questions right away on Tuesday.
According to her LinkedIn page, Linton worked for General Motors as a sales manager until 2009.
She didn’t finish her nursing degree until 2015, although she started working in healthcare as a “extern” at NYU in 2010.
Her counsel said in court yesterday that she has a “deep” history of mental health issues.
He requested that her arraignment be postponed until October, claiming that they would have contributed to the collision.
Linton was involved in 13 previous traffic incidents, including one in 2020 that resulted in the entire destruction of two automobiles, according to the prosecution.
The Los Angeles Times mentioned the collisions yesterday, but no more information has surfaced.
It’s still unknown how Linton, who had severe mental health issues, managed to work in healthcare, much less in the intensive care unit.
She cried in court on Monday as she was accused with six charges of murder.
At the busy junction of La Brea and Slauson Avenues, Linton was moving at least 90 mph when she ran a red light and struck oncoming traffic.
Asherey Ryan, 23, who was eight months pregnant, her one-year-old son Alonzo Luchiano Quintero, and her unborn son were all declared dead at the site of the terrible accident.
Those close to the family reported that Renald, the father of the unborn child, died in the collision as well as the automobile split in two instantly on contact.
When Linton crashed into the vehicle carrying Asherey, Renald, and young Alonzo, they were on route to a doctor’s appointment for a pregnancy check-up.
Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón said on Monday that “a young family was decimated in the blink of an eye.”
Families and relatives of the deceased and wounded have suffered terrible harm.
“It’s not only a huge loss for their families, but for our whole community,” the now-viral video of the crash said, “who learnt of this horrible tragedy.”
The fifth victim was identified as Pitchford by his relatives.
On August 4, 2022, they lost Craig Pitchford, a loving father, grandfather, and friend, tragically, according to a GoFundMe page they created yesterday.
Craig was one of the unfortunate people who perished in the terrible collision at Slauson and La Brea.
Since there is no insurance, we are soliciting money for his funeral ceremony. Any contribution you are moved to make is much appreciated.