Dallas: A Texas judge said she ordered a 16-year-old boy who's accused of killing a woman and raping at least four others in Dallas and Louisiana to be tried as an adult because the "public was indeed in need of protection" from the teen.

Dallas County Juvenile Judge Andrea Martin Lane told The Dallas Morning News that she prefers to seek a rehabilitative approach for teen offenders, but said the allegations against Lenario Jarvis Washington are so serious as to warrant prosecution as an adult. The judge certified Washington as an adult on Wednesday. He's charged with crimes that include capital murder and four counts of aggravated sexual assault. "I don't usually certify," she told the newspaper. "If there is a chance, then I'm most likely going to give them a chance."