Mario Joseph Bickham, 36, of Hawthorne pleaded not guilty Oct. 22 to two counts of second-degree murder. Prosecutors allege he was driving 112.5 mph before a June 2025 crash on the 405 Freeway that killed an LAPD sergeant and a stranded motorist.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Louis T. Parise Jr. ordered Bickham held without bail, noting the defendant has a "long, documented driving history" with accidents, citations and two failures to appear on speeding tickets, Patch reported.

The crash killed 53-year-old LAPD Sgt. Shiou Deng and 34-year-old Jesús Garcia shortly after 2 a.m. on June 23, 2025, on the southbound 405 just north of Moraga Drive near Bel-Air.

Garcia had just finished a shift at Whole Foods in Woodland Hills and was driving home when a hit-and-run driver struck his 2004 Toyota Tundra, leaving it disabled in the HOV lane, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. That driver has never been identified. Deng arrived in his patrol vehicle, activated his emergency lights and got out to help Garcia.

During the roughly two minutes between Deng's arrival and the collision, 33 other vehicles safely passed the scene, prosecutors said.

Deputy District Attorney Eric Siddall wrote in a court filing that the data recorder from Bickham's 2023 Nissan Maxima showed a speed of 112.5 mph five seconds before impact. Bickham applied hard brakes but crashed into the patrol car, Garcia's disabled truck and both men. The posted speed limit on that stretch of highway was 65 mph.

Siddall told the judge that Bickham's speed had turned his car into "a missile."

Bickham had been cited for excessive speed over the past 15 years, including a citation for driving over 105 mph a month before the fatal crash, the Daily News reported. District Attorney Nathan Hochman said Bickham had been offered traffic school but did not attend, and failed to appear at court hearings tied to those tickets.

Deputy Public Defender Stephen Borello called the case "grossly overcharged" in his court filing. He argued the crash was a tragic accident, not murder, and asked the judge to release Bickham on his own recognizance with conditions including GPS monitoring and surrender of his driver's license and passport.

Borello told the judge that Bickham works as a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agent and "lives paycheck to paycheck." He said his client could not afford more than $500 bail. The defense attorney said character letters and court appearances by supporters showed Bickham's community ties. He also noted his client had braked to 77 mph at the time of impact.

Drugs and alcohol were not factors in the crash, Hochman said.

Garcia was outside his vehicle when he was struck. He died at the scene. Deng was taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Deng was promoted to sergeant in 2023 and assigned to the West Los Angeles Division. He had served over 26 years with the LAPD, including 17 years in the department's Mental Evaluation Unit.

The California Highway Patrol arrested Bickham outside his Hawthorne home on June 29 after a yearlong investigation. He was initially held on $4 million bail. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years to life in state prison for each count.

Bickham is due back in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom Nov. 4 for a bail review and to set a date for a preliminary hearing. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.