A 19-year-old man pleaded not guilty Friday to the 2017 murder of Walter (Ras) Riley, a well-liked transient known as “Incense Man” in Ocean Beach.
Noah Mitchell Jackson appeared in blue jail clothes before San Diego Superior Court Judge Maureen Hallahan.
“Bail will remain as set at $2 million,” ruled Hallahan after attorneys submitted the bail issue without any arguments about bail.
Deputy District Attorney Michael Reilly said Jackson faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life if he is convicted of first-degree murder.
Attorneys did not go over the facts in court about the June 22, 2017 slaying of Riley, who was stabbed repeatedly around 12:30 a.m. in the 1900 block of Bacon Street.
A preliminary hearing was set for March 8. Reilly said it would likely be delayed at another hearing on March 6. It was given a time estimate of one day.
Riley sold aromatic burning sticks at the weekly OB Farmers Market and along Newport Avenue during the week, which accounts for his nickname.
A 911 caller said one man was attacking another on Bacon Street. Riley was taken to the UCSD Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
Surveillance camera footage from a nearby business showed a man wearing a grey or white hooded sweatshirt leaving the area. The photo was published by media and TV stations and a $1,000 reward was offered for his arrest.
Jackson was located at a medical facility in Huntington Beach, and was arrested there on Feb. 20.