BANGOR (AP) – A Glenburn teenager who was on a weekend furlough from a juvenile detention center when he allegedly caused a crash that killed a passenger will be tried as an adult for manslaughter, a judge ruled.

John Stillings, 17, was driving without a license when the vehicle went out of control and overturned, killing a 16-year-old passenger, police said. His blood alcohol exceeded the legal limit for an adult when he was captured 90 minutes later.

District Judge Ann Murray cited the seriousness of the crime in ordering Stillings to be tried as an adult in Superior Court.

“The combination of John Stillings’ unresolved substance abuse problem despite years of treatment, his repeated criminal acts … cause the court to conclude that John Stillings poses a significant risk to public safety,” Murray wrote in her ruling.

If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison for manslaughter. If convicted as a juvenile, the maximum penalty would have been detention at Mountain View Youth Development Center until age 21.

Stillings is also charged with aggravated assault, drunken driving, reckless conduct and leaving the scene of an accident.

The episode unfolded at 2:41 a.m. on Jan. 31, 2004, while Stillings was on a weekend pass from Mountain View in Charleston.

Jessica Lazore, 16, died after being ejected from a Nissan Pathfinder that crashed while traveling at an estimated 74 mph. Stillings and the other passenger, Krista Hyson, 16, were not seriously injured in the crash.

Stillings fled on foot but was located nearby. Ninety minutes after the crash, his blood alcohol level was above the legal limit of 0.08 percent for adults, Assistant District Attorney Patrick Larson said.

Stillings has been committed off and on to the juvenile correctional facility in Charleston since May 2002 for a variety of crimes, including car theft and drunken driving.

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Information from: Bangor Daily News, http://www.bangornews.com

AP-ES-01-04-05 0928EST