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Teen Charged As Adult In Deadly School Bus Shooting

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Prosecutors have upgraded the charges against a teen accused of accidentally shooting and killing a girl on a private school bus last November.

Jordyn Howe, 15, was not in the courtroom Wednesday but he was in the building when prosecutors decided to charge him as an adult with manslaughter, possession of a firearm and possession of a concealed weapon.

No one from  Howe's family was in the courtroom but Lourdes' mother Ady was and said the state made the right decision.

"That's what we were fighting for he has to pay for what he did as an adult and it teaches other kids to too, this is what you get for doing things you're not supposed to"  said Ady DeJesus.

The day of the shooting, Howe  was then taken into custody and transported to the Juvenile Detention days later a judge granted he surrender his passport and be put under house arrest with a monitoring device allowing the state more time investigate the case.

Thirty days later a decision was made to charge him as an adult. Wednesday morning Howe turned himself in and was transported to the Dade County Jail where he is expected to appear in bond.

The shooting happened around 6:45 a.m. at SW 296th Street and SW 137th Avenue. in Homestead.

In addition to Howe, there were eight other students on the bus including 13-year old Lourdes Guzman-DeJesus. The students were being taken to Palm Glades Preparatory Academy and Summerville Advantage Academy.

During the ride, Howe reportedly took out a .40 caliber handgun which he had taken from the home he shares with his mother. The family reportedly did not realize that the gun was missing until they got a call from police. Howe allegedly told investigators that he knew the gun was loaded but still passed it around the bus. At one point the gun went off, a bullet striking Guzman-DeJesus in the neck.

Guzman-DeJesus, who also went by Jina, was airlifted after the shooting to Miami Children's Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

"The right thing is to do a direct file and file this case in the adult system which is where it belongs," the attorney said. "The young man took a gun to school. A woman took her children and put them on the bus expecting them to get to school safely."

Howe's next scheduled appearance before a judge will be Thursday in bond court.

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