Crown to seek adult sentence if teen accused in death of Darius Brown is found guilty

The Crown is seeking to try the youth accused of killing 17-year-old Montrealer Darius Brown as an adult.

Thatmeans if found guilty, the teen would face life in prison with no chance of parole for 10 to 25 years.

The teen, also 17, appeared in youth court in Montreal on Thursday.

Brown's parents and several friends and family were present in the courtroom, huggingeach other in the hallway before the hearing.

The youth, who can't be identified because he is under the age of majority, is accused of second-degree murder.

If the judge agrees to the Crown's request to try the youth as an adult, prosecutor Yanick Massicotte said that would entitle him to a preliminary inquiry and he would be tried in adult court, before a judge and jury.

2 new charges

Prosecutors also announced two new charges against the teen accused of killing Brown:drug possession for the purposes of trafficking and breach of probation.

• 'How come you can't come home?': Parents, teachers mourn Montreal teen Darius Brown

Police say Brown died after an altercation involving four people in Cte Saint-Luc last Thursday.

Initially, police said Brown had died when he fell after trying to rob a young woman. They later said that wasn't the case, and that Brown was the victim of a homicide.

• Montreal police's mistake in reporting teen's death racially based, activists say

Brown's parents criticized police for their initial reports suggesting their son was committing a robbery before he died.

Teachers and friends have described Brown as well-loved and kind to other teenagers.

A bail hearing has been set forDec. 2.