NEW ORLEANS — A 17-year-old accused of breaking out of the Bridge City Juvenile Center, carjacking, shooting and nearly killing a 59-year-old man in the Uptown area, will be tried as an adult after being indicted by a special grand jury, District Attorney Jason Williams announced Thursday.
Kendell Myles is accused of shooting and carjacking 59-year-old Scott Toups near Nashville and Loyola on July 17 as he was dropping off donations of Mardi Gras beads at a box at that location.
Toups remains hospitalized and in critical condition nearly two months after the shooting.
Williams said that Myles was indicted on attempted second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit armed robbery with the use of a gun, armed robbery with the use of a gun, illegal discharge of a firearm while committing a crime of violence and aggravated flight from an officer.
Myles' alleged accomplice, 16-year-old Kayla Smith, will also be charged as an adult for conspiracy to commit armed robbery with the use of a firearm and armed robbery with the use of a firearm.
“As we work diligently to combat this senseless crime surge taking place in New Orleans, my office is committed to doing everything in our power to ensure that those who choose to wreak havoc in our community are appropriately held accountable,” said Williams.
Williams noted that Myles was already incarcerated and serving juvenile life for a separate crime, so that if he were to be convicted in juvenile court again and again sentenced to juvenile life, he would effectively receive no additional penalty for the crime against Toups.
"Myles was already sentenced to juvenile life for a separate violent crime. If this case were to remain in juvenile court, this would mean that Myles would have no accountability for these horrible actions and my office will not allow that," said Williams.
As of two weeks ago, Toups' family said that they needed some miracles for him to pull through.
"We've had the hard discussions," she said. "He has some moments of clarity. His nurse told me this morning that she said, 'if you can hear me, put your thumb up,' and he gave a halfhearted thumbs up."