No New Charges for Driver Accused in Girl's Death

Prosecutor Marna Miller was unable to convince a Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Friday that four counts of assault with a deadly weapon should be added to the murder charge against Sina Khankhanian, the 28-year-old man accused of killing Malibu eighth-grader Emily Shane in April 2010 while driving on Pacific Coast Highway near Heathercliff Road.

Judge Katherine Mader ruled at the Airport Courthouse that there was no evidence for the additional charges against Khankhanian, who has been charged with second-degree murder in the girl's death.

Khankhanian's vehicle struck and killed Emily while she was standing on the side of the highway. The incident followed Khankhanian's 17-mile drive from Topanga Canyon Boulevard that prosecutors allege was deliberately suicidal and reckless. Miller said drivers were forced to move their vehicles out of Khankhanian's way to avoid being struck.

"The method that he used [to attempt to kill himself] was to drive his car like a maniac and basically railroad anyone who was in his way," Miller told the judge. "He drove like a maniac for 17 miles that ended up with the collision, which caused the death of a little girl."

Mader said how Khankhanian allegedly drove on the highway could be considered "reckless," but it did not meet the legal definition of assault with a deadly weapon.

"An assault is an attempt to commit a battery. … With respect to these four individuals, there wasn't any evidence that the defendant intended to commit a battery," Mader said.

She added, "If your theory is correct here, then every reckless driver—and we have many of them that drive down the road at 100-plus mph putting many people in danger—should also be charged with multiple felony [assaults with a deadly weapon]."

After Mader denied the motion, Miller asked if one of the drivers who reported he had to move out of Khankhanian's way to avoid being struck should have remained where he was. Mader refused to answer the question, saying she had made her ruling.

Khankhanian's trial was expected to begin next month, but because of holiday season conflicts, the start date was moved to Jan. 9.