ST. LOUIS COUNTY – A 16-year-old St. Louis County juvenile accused of fatally stabbing a man in 2025 has been certified to stand trial as an adult and charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action, authorities said.
The St. Louis County Family Court on April 21, 2026, certified Dakota Merit, 16, of the 200 block of Carrington Lane in St. Louis, Missouri, as an adult. The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office issued the charges the same day. Merit is being held on a $300,000 cash-only bond with no 10% option, authorities said.
Merit was originally taken into custody on Aug. 17, 2025, and held by the St. Louis County Family Court.
According to the probable cause statement, “On August 17, 2025, upon investigation, it was determined that suspect, Dakota Merit stabbed victim, D.M. causing D.M. to die as a result of the injury.”
Police previously said officers from the South County Precinct responded at 4:28 p.m. on Aug. 17, 2025, to a call for service for a stabbing in the 200 block of Carrington Lane. Officers found an adult male with life-threatening stab wounds, police said. The victim was taken to an area hospital but died and was pronounced dead, according to police.
The victim was identified as Derrick Merit, 39, of the 200 block of Carrington Lane, police said.
St. Louis County Police Department Bureau of Crimes Against Persons detectives are handling the investigation, authorities said.
“Please note that charges are merely accusations, and Defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law,” the release said.
