Drugged Driver Who Killed Bicyclist Faces New Charges

By PAUL ANDERSON

An attorney due in court tomorrow to be sentenced for a drug-fueled collision that killed a bicyclist in Mission Viejo is now facing allegations of possessing a prescription anti-anxiety drug while in custody, a prosecutor said today.

Hasti Fakhrai-Bayrooti, 41, of Rancho Santa Margarita made an open plea March 10 to Orange County Superior Court Judge Greg Jones, meaning there was no guarantee what her punishment would be for felony vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. The sentencing range is 16 months to four years in prison.

Fakhrai-Bayrooti had been free on $100,000 bail. But when defense attorney William Weinberg convinced the judge that he needed more time to prepare for his client’s sentencing, Jones ordered the defendant jailed on May 8.

Weinberg will seek another sentencing delay on Wednesday. He said he did not receive a probation report until the morning of the May 8 hearing.

On May 26, Fakhrai-Bayrooti was charged with a felony count of possession of a controlled substance in a correctional facility, Deputy District Attorney Stephen Cornwell said. The defendant was allegedly caught in possession of Clonazepam pills while behind bars on May 13, the prosecutor said.

Until May 8, the defendant had been free on $100,000 bail posted on Sept. 27, 2013.

At the May 8 hearing, Jones heard multiple victim impact statements from family members of the victim, 54-year-old Eric Billings.

Billings’ relatives, some of whom live out of state, implored the judge to sentence the defendant to the maximum punishment.

Fakhrai-Bayrooti, who checked into a mental health program after her March guilty plea, turned away probation officials who tried to interview her before sentencing.

Jones noted the defendant was on her third attorney and had mentioned possibly withdrawing her guilty plea. By law, however, the defense is required to have at least five days to review a probation report, Jones said.

After the guilty plea, Cornwell said Fakhrai-Bayrooti’s preliminary hearing had been delayed so many times that the prosecutor had scheduled a grand jury to seek an indictment, which would have allowed him to skip the preliminary hearing.

Fakhrai-Bayrooti was driving south on Santa Margarita Parkway in Mission Viejo about 6:45 p.m. on March 15, 2013, when her 2003 Acura MDX drifted into the bicycle lane and struck Billings, Cornwell said.

Fakhrai-Bayrooti was under the influence of prescription drugs such as Xanax and Suboxone at the time of the collision, the prosecutor said.

Billings, a Rancho Santa Margarita resident and married father of four, owned a construction company.

City News Service