16 year-old will be tried as adult

UPDATE: A judge has ruled a teenager will be tried as an adult .

The hearing took about hour and a half. The prosecutors were arguing 16 year-old Zaccheus Silva could only stay in the juvenile court system until he was 21, not leaving much time for him to be punished for his crime.

Silva had previous run-ins with law enforcement in the past, but nothing violent.

Officers described how the teen beat the victim to death, and had no remorse for the act.

Prosecutors also argued his parental figures were not good influences on the man.

At the hearing, the judge decided the teen should be tried as an adult. He was then taken into custody and will be going to the Cole County Jail.

Silva will be tried as a man.

ORIGINAL: Back in April, a 63 year-old man was found with blunt force trauma and later died from his injuries.

In May, a 16 year-old was detained for the crime.

Since then, the teen has been considered a juvenile and all of his hearings have been private. His name has not been released.

Thursday will be the first time the public will be open to one of the hearings. The judge will decide if the teen should be tried as an adult.

The hearing begins at 9 a.m. at the Cole County Courthouse.

Our crews will be attending and will let you know what the judge decides.