VISTA, Calif. -- An Escondido man with a previous conviction for driving under the influence pleaded not guilty Tuesday to striking a female bicyclist with his car and fleeing the scene of the fatal crash.

Brian Stephen Carnes, 41, faces about seven years in prison if convicted of hit-and-run causing death, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and driving on a license that was suspended because of a previous DUI.

The collision in a marked bike lane on northbound Highway 101 near Solana Vista Drive around 11:45 a.m. Friday took the life of 40-year-old Jeannie Franklin.


An SUV struck the rear of the bicycle ridden by Franklin, who died at the scene, sheriff's Sgt. Randy Webb said.

The married woman lived near the site of the crash, the sergeant said.

An off-duty sheriff's senior-patrol volunteer who witnessed the crash jotted down the SUV's license plate, and Carnes was arrested about 90 minutes after the crash when he arrived at his apartment complex on Rock Springs Road, according to Webb.

The sergeant said the vehicle had front-end damage and had just been washed.

"It's a tragic, tragic case where a woman was riding a bicycle and lost her life," Deputy District Attorney Brenda Daly said.

The prosecutor was not sure when Carnes previous DUI violation took place, but said it was "years ago."

Judge Adrienne Orfield set bail at $205,000 and scheduled a preliminary hearing for April 3.

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