A sailor who shot his shipmate waited more than an hour to call 911, according to prosecutors.
That delay is the basis for the murder charge filed against Clinton Echols, 25, who pleaded not guilty when he appeared in court on Friday.
Echols and Luis Urbina, 20, were playing video games Wednesday night at a San Carlos apartment prior to the shooting, investigators believe. At some point, Echols allegedly pulled out three handguns, loaded at least one of them, and shot Urbina in the chest. At first, police thought the shooting was accidental, but they arrested Echols after learning he waited so long to call.
"Something like that -- for somebody to wait that long, it just shows that there's more than just an accident there," Deputy District Attorney James Simmons said.
Prosecutors believe that Echols did not try to help Urbina before paramedics got there.
The sailors are both assigned on board the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier.
