BELLEVILLE – A 9-year-old boy charged with first-degree murder in the beating death of a southwestern Illinois toddler should be held in state custody and given a mental health evaluation, a judge ordered.

Associate Judge Walter Brandon on Thursday ordered that the Illinois Department of Human Services take custody of the boy, who is not being identified because of his age. He’s charged as a juvenile in the Aug. 22 death of a 14-month-old boy at a home in Cahokia, an Illinois suburb of St. Louis.

The Belleville News Democrat reported the 9-year-old boy sat quietly and looked straight ahead as prosecution and defense lawyers argued about what to with him Thursday.