NEW CASTLE — A boy who was 11 when he allegedly killed his father's pregnant fiancee with a shotgun has a "very limited" likelihood of being rehabilitated through the juvenile court system, a psychiatrist hired by state prosecutors said.

A judge must now weigh that in deciding whether Jordan Brown, now 12, will be tried as an adult or have his case moved to juvenile court.

Brown faces up to life in prison if he's convicted of the Feb. 20, 2009 slaying of 26-year-old Kenzie Houk and her nearly full-term son as she lay in bed in their New Galilee farmhouse. If the case is moved to juvenile court, the longest Brown could remain incarcerated or on probation would be about nine years — until he's 21.

To move the case under Pennsylvania law, Brown's attorneys must prove he would be more "amenable" to rehabilitation in the juvenile system.

Dr. John O'Brien, hired by state prosecutors, said Brown's "amenability to rehabilitation, in my opinion, is very limited."

The psychiatrist based that opinion on testimony from a March 24 preliminary hearing, records and interviews with staff at the Erie juvenile detention center where Brown is being held, and an interview with the boy last month, among other things.

O'Brien said Brown is "avoidant" and "evasive" when asked about the killings and denies all responsibility for them.

O'Brien said the boy is "not forthcoming," "harbors resentments" and carries "a lot of negative feelings in him that he won't reveal."