A motorist who was allegedly drunk when he lost control of his car, sending it off the freeway and killing two passengers, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to murder and other charges.
Mario Alberto Carranza, 26, was ordered held on $1 million bail for charges stemming from the wreck near Lakeside Saturday. He has a prior DUI.
Carranza was westbound on Interstate 8 near Lake Jennings Park Road about 7:30 a.m. when his vehicle drifted into the center divider, according to the California Highway Patrol. He then overcorrected, and the car smashed through a chain-link fence before ending up in a concrete culvert, the CHP reported.
Two passengers, Monica Lupercio and Carlos Vargas, both 20, were killed and Carranza was seriously injured.
The San Diego resident was taken to a hospital, where his blood-alcohol level was measured above .30 percent – nearly four times higher than the legal limit, said Deputy District Attorney Douglas Rose.
He said the defendant, whose DUI conviction was from 2007, faces 30 years to life in state prison if convicted of two counts each of murder, vehicular manslaughter and DUI causing injury, along with one count of possession of cocaine.
A May 6 preliminary hearing has been set for Carranza.
– City News Service
