16-Year-Old Charged As Adult Pleads Not Guilty To Murder Of Nurse

WAUKEGAN, IL — A teenager accused of fatally shooting his neighbor after recklessly opening fire with a rifle in a residential neighborhood of Zion pleaded not guilty Wednesday.

Zechariah C. Myles, 16, of the 2800 block of Enoch Avenue, was arraigned on six counts of first-degree murder in the death of Melanie Yates, 23, a young mother and nurse who died after she was hit by a stray bullet while inside her nearby house with her infant child, authorities said.

Yates was not the teen's intended target but was hit once in the head by a bullet Myles fired at someone else, according to police and the medical examiner's office.

Four days after the shooting, investigators got a warrant for Myles' arrest on murder charges.

Three weeks later, the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force, which Zion police called in for assistance, announced it appeared he was trying to evade arrest.

Then, on Nov. 16, Myles was arrested near Belvidere Road and South Jackson Street in Waukegan after officers were dispatched to a call of gunfire and found Myles and two other minors fleeing the scene. Officers found three handguns following the trio's arrest, police said.

Related: Teen Accused Of Killing Neighbor Arrested After Call Of Gunfire

Illinois law requires 16-year-olds charged with first-degree murder to be tried as adults, rather than in juvenile court.

Although he is being tried as an adult, Myles has been ordered held in the county's juvenile detention facilities unless he can come up with the $300,000 cash portion of his bond.

Lake County State's Attorney Eric Rinehart said in a statement prosecutors will seek justice for the Yates family with a sentence that deters others from committing similar offenses.

"[W]e will seek to unpack and understand the social circumstances that led to a 16-year-old having a rifle in the first place and causing so much pain," Rinehart said. "We must do everything in our power to support the survivors and to prevent this tragic crime from happening to others."

A conviction for first-degree murder carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 in state prison, which could be reduced if prosecutors agree to reduced charges in exchange for a guilty plea.

Myles is due back in court Feb. 15 before Lake County Circuit Judge George Strickland for a case management hearing.

Earlier: Murder Warrant Issued For Teen In Zion Nurse's Killing