Bexar County officials have not yet decided whether a 16-year-old Seguin youth accused of murder will be charged as an adult.

The youth was arrested at his home late April 26 in connection with the stabbing death of Robert Perales Jr., who was pronounced dead at Brooke Army Medical Center just after midnight that day.

According to a San Antonio Police Department report, Perales was stabbed in the chest and stomach in a closing time dispute on the Fiesta Carnival midway.

A San Antonio Police Department spokesman said the killing might be gang-related.

Friday, Jill Mata, chief of the juvenile section of the Bexar County District Attorney''s Office, said it was too early in the process to say whether the suspect, who officials have not publicly identified, would be tried as an adult.

"We''re inclined to certify him, but we haven''t made a decision yet," Mata said. "We make that decision after looking at the facts of a case."

First, she said, the SAPD would have to work up its investigation and present that to the district attorney''s office.

Before prosecutors decide how to proceed, they will consider the nature of the offense and the background of the suspect, Mata said.

State law says anyone age 14 and above can be certified for trial as an adult.

If certified, the youth could then request a bail hearing on the murder allegation.

A juvenile has no right to post bail. What happens instead is every 10 working days the juvenile is brought back before a judge who will decide whether the juvenile should be released.

Generally, a judge will consider whether the suspect poses a possible threat to himself or someone else.

"Typically, in a murder case, they get detained," Mata said.

If the youth is to be charged as an adult, his case will be remanded to a district court.

"Then, he''s looking at a minimum of five years and a maximum of 99 years in prison," Mata said.

According to reports, Perales, 19, suffered four stab wounds.

A police officer who responded to the call reported he found Perales on his back on the ground with another person trying to stop the bleeding from his wounds.

The arrested youth is being held in Bexar County''s juvenile detention facility. His next detention hearing is set for May 13.