Not guilty plea in bicyclist fatal crash

SAN FRANCISCO, CA

According to police and prosecutors, 21-year-old Nils Linke, who was visiting the U.S. from Germany, was biking south on Masonic Avenue near Turk Street at about 10:40 p.m. on Aug. 13 when an older-model Mercedes-Benz struck him from behind while going in the same direction.

The driver of the Mercedes, 36-year-old Joshua Calder, allegedly drove away from the scene afterward, prosecutors said. He was arrested about two blocks away after witnesses gave police a description of the car.

Calder pleaded not guilty this morning in San Francisco Superior Court to charges of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, drunken driving and hit-and-run. A judge ordered him to undergo alcohol counseling.

Calder is out of custody after posting bail, which had been set at $500,000.

He is scheduled to return to court Oct. 1 for a status hearing.

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