A woman accused of killing four people after allegedly driving her car through a group of pedestrians crossing a street after a Christmas concert in Redondo Beach has been ordered to stand trial.
Margo Bronstein has been charged with four felony counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and one felony count of driving under the influence of a drug causing injury.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Laura Priver denied a defense motion to dismiss the case against 56-year-old.
She is accused of running a red light at around 8 p.m. on Dec. 17, and plowing into a group of pedestrians who had just attended a Christmas concert at St. James Catholic Church.
Four people died, including 6-year-old Samuel Gaza and his mother Martha Garza and two other women.
Investigators say Bronstein, who has a long term disability and drives with hand-brakes due to her condition, was driving while under the influence of prescription drugs medications.
Witnesses said they saw Bronstein swerve around several stopped cars and into the on-coming lane of traffic before running into the crosswalk.
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A Redondo Beach Police Department officer testified the defendant turned over 13 muscle relaxant pills, nine opioid pain pills and five other unidentified pills she had in the car at the time.
Defense attorney Jeffrey Gray is expected to argue it was an accident, and that his client was not addicted to prescription drug medications.
Bronstein, who sat next to the defense table in a wheelchair, showed no emotion during the proceedings. She previously pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The defendant is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail, with the trial set to begin February 10th. She faces up to 40 years in state prison if convicted.
