A preliminary hearing is scheduled next week for a 20-year-old Desert Hot Springs man accused of gunning down a motorist for reasons still unclear.
Michael Alex Dodd allegedly killed 34-year-old Francisco Lemus last week.
Dodd, who was arrested Dec. 30, is charged with first-degree murder and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.
He pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Friday before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Dean Benjamini, who tentatively set the preliminary hearing for Jan. 15 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
The hearing would determine whether are grounds for proceeding with a trial on the allegations.
Dodd is being held in lieu of $2 million bail at the Benoit Detention Center.
According to the Desert Hot Springs Police Department, at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 28, there was an unspecified confrontation between the defendant and Lemus in the 66000 block of Avenida Cadena, near West Drive, where the victim was sitting in his vehicle.
During the encounter, Dodd allegedly opened fire, mortally wounding Lemus, police said, adding that the defendant immediately fled the scene.
First responders arrived minutes later and pronounced Lemus dead in the car.
Detectives pieced together clues that quickly pointed to Dodd as the alleged shooter. He was tracked to a property on Marilynn Street in Lancaster, where he was taken into custody without incident Tuesday.
He has no documented prior felony adult convictions in Riverside County.