NEW ORLEANS - A 17-year-old will be tried as an adult after he was accused of breaking out of the Bridge City Juvenile Center and carjacking and shooting a 59-year-old man, nearly killing him.

Kendell Myles, 17, allegedly broke out of the juvenile detention center and shot Scott Toups, 59, on July 17, WWL-TV reports. Toups was reportedly dropping off donations of Mardis Gras beads when he was carjacked and shot.

Toups is still in the hospital in critical condition two months later.

District Attorney Jason Williams said if Myles is tried as a juvenile, he would serve juvenile life, which would "effectively" be "no additional penalty" due to Myles' age. 

"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," Williams told WWL-TV.