OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT/Gray News) – More than a month after a fatal crash, a woman was formally charged with the deaths of four people, including her own children, after the authorities said she was driving drunk at nearly 140 miles per hour at the time of the wreck. .

Rachel Bickerstaff, a 33-year-old Omaha, Nebraska, woman cried in her wheelchair during her court appearance on Thursday.

Bickerstaff was booked into the Douglas County Jail on Wednesday after being hospitalized for weeks in Kansas with severe burns. A warrant was issued for her while she was in the hospital.

State authorities asked that Bickerstaff’s bond be set at $5 million; the judge agreed to the request and scheduled her preliminary hearing for Dec. 9.

More details about the crash were shared in court on Friday. It happened just before 1:30 am on Sept. 27.

Authorities said Bickerstaff’s 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee ran a red light at 10th Street. She was driving nearly 140 miles per hour on Douglas Street just five seconds before the crash and more than 100 mph on impact.

According to court documents, Bickerstaff’s blood-alcohol content tested at .216, which is almost three times the legal limitat the hospital.

Bickerstaff was able to get herself out of the vehicle, records should.

At great risk to themselves, “good Samaritans” were able to get her passenger, a 38-year-old man who is also the father of Bickerstaff’s three girls that died as a result of the crash, out of the Jeep as it burned, recordsshow.

The 38-year-old survived the crash, but the vehicle was too engulfed in flames to rescue the 11-day-old and 5-year-old who were trapped in her vehicle.

“Passengers tried to go back for her children who were trapped in the car. Excuse me, good Samaritans did, but the vehicle was too fully engulfed in flames at that point in time. She’s going 139 miles an hour on Douglas, which is completely outrageous. She’s going over 100 mph at impact; “she appears to be intoxicated when treated by medics,” the state also said.

Records also show that 70-year-old Michael Salesof Council Bluffs, was the other driver involved in the crash. He was trapped in his 2017 Subaru Outback and died in the fiery wreck. He was on his way home from work at FedEx at the time of the crash.

According to court documents, Bickerstaff’s 18-month-old child who was ejected during the crash and taken to a burn unit in Kansas City for injuries sustained in the crash, eventually died days later.

Court documents filed earlier this month stated that emergency room staff who treated the child said the injuries “could only be described as ‘haunting.’”

Bickerstaff is charged with four counts of motor vehicle homicide and one count driving while intoxicated and causing serious bodily injury. If convicted on the homicide charges, she could be sentenced to as many as 50 years in jail for each count. She could also get up to three years in jail and a $10,000 fine if she is convicted on the DUI.

Court records also show that Bickerstaff had one prior DUI conviction in early 2020. She pleaded no contest to misdemeanor DUI and reckless driving, losing her license for 60 days and requiring an interlock device. She was also on probation for six months and had to pay fines totaling less than $800.

WOWT previously reported that Bickerstaff has four other children, likely now between the ages of 8 and 11 years old, who were put into state custody several years ago. Based on juvenile court records, the passenger injured the crash is also the father to one of them.

Documents show the state had concerns for the safety and well-being of the children, alleging that Bickerstaff missed her drug tests; she had a history of methamphetamine use, the documents state. She also wasn’t following a medical plan for one of her children.

Eventually, in 2019, the parents relinquished their rights and those children were put up for adoption.

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