Douglas County prosecutors have filed a motion to try a 17-year-old Lawrence boy as an adult in the stabbing death of his grandmother.

The teen, Jaered Long, was arrested in late December after police found his grandmother, Deborah Bretthauer, 67, dead in her apartment on Dec. 28 with “obvious traumatic injuries.” Long was 16 at the time.

Both Long and Bretthauer lived in the apartment at 1200 George Court.

Initially Long faced a single charge of first-degree murder in juvenile court. He pleaded not guilty to the charge.

After his plea, Pro Tem Judge James George ordered Long detained in the Douglas County Juvenile Detention Center for the duration of the legal process, saying that he might be considered a danger to himself or others.

On Wednesday, Long appeared in court and the judge set a date of March 22 to hear the motion to try him as an adult.

In the motion, the prosecution argued that Long is presumed to be an adult under Kansas criminal statutes because of his age and the serious nature of the charge, first-degree murder.

If Long is found guilty of first-degree murder in juvenile court, he could face a maximum sentence of 60 months in prison, or to the age of 22.

If the motion to prosecute Long as an adult is granted and he is found guilty of the charge, he could face more than 40 years in prison.

Requests for the arrest affidavits in Long’s case were denied by Douglas County District Court.

Further information was not immediately available.

— Reporter Karen Dillon contributed to this story.