MIAMI – A prosecutor said Thursday the state is considering charging a teenager as an adult in the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy at a Halloween party in southwest Miami-Dade County.
Josue Cao, 17, appeared in court Thursday morning as a judge ordered that he be held in juvenile detention while the state determines whether to charge him as an adult.
Cao is one of three teens charged with second-degree murder in the death of Angel Cueli, a 15-year-old student at Miami Coral Park Senior High School.
Miami-Dade police said Cao and Matthew Hernandez, 18, opened fire at rival gang members in attendance during Saturday night's party at a home on Southwest 132nd Avenue. Police said Marcos Gonzalez, 18, drove Cao and Hernandez to the party, knowing their intentions.
Cueli, who was not affiliated with the gang and is not believed to have been the intended target, was shot. He was flown to Kendall Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
"We have nothing to say," Cao's mother said in Spanish as she left the courthouse.
Cueli's father said he's happy to see the teens in custody.
"It may not bring complete closure, but there's a sense -- there's a sliver of relief -- that that specific individual will not hurt another person," Alfred Cueli told Local 10 News.
Cao will be held for up to 21 days while the state determines whether to charge him as an adult.