LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Lawrence teenager accused of killing his grandmother will be tried as an adult.

Douglas County District Court Judge Kay Huff ruled Monday that 17-year-old Jaered Long will be tried as an adult on a first-degree murder charge. He is suspected of stabbing his 67-year-old grandmother, Deborah Bretthauer, to death at her apartment in December.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Long was 16 when his grandmother died. He lived in the apartment with her.

As an adult, Long faces a life sentence if he is convicted.