(Oxnard, California) A bid to move the trial of Brandon McInerney, the 15-year old accused of killing gay classmate Lawrence King, to juvenile court has been rejected by the California Supreme Court.

If convicted he could be sentenced to 51 years to life. If he were convicted in juvenile court, the sentence would be much shorter.

King, 15, often dressed in a feminine manner and told friends that he was gay. He was shot in the head during a morning class at E.O. Green Junior High in Oxnard in February 2008. More than 20 other students were in the room at the time. McInerney, then 14, was arrested shortly after the shooting.