SAN DIEGO -- A teen accused of crashing a car carrying four of his Torrey Pines High School classmates, killing one of them as they left a party, will be held at Juvenile Hall until at least Oct. 19, a judge ruled Wednesday.

The 17-year-old driver, who has been identified as Branden Butler, is charged with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence while intoxicated and two counts of DUI causing great bodily injury.

Defense attorney Robert Bourne argued unsuccessfully that the boy should be released to his parents, because he is an "exceptional student" and has no history of problems with school administrators.

The high school senior is also a star athlete who just a few months ago made the San Diego Hall of Champions All-League team for lacrosse.

Deputy District Attorney Aimee McLeod told Judge George "Woody" Clarke that the youth may have a drug problem, and that his parents had been testing him for drug use.

McLeod said officers asked Butler on the day of the crash if he had used an illegal substance.

According to McLeod, officers asked Butler, "Have you smoked marijuana tonight?"

Butler replied, "No, I haven't for two months since my parents drug test me."

McLeod added that right before the accident, the teen was speeding and that his blood-alcohol content was 0.10 percent about an hour after the crash. The blood-alcohol level for an adult is 0.8 percent.

The boy wore a Juvenile Hall-issued orange shirt and navy blue pants at Wednesday's detention hearing. His hands were shackled and he did not look at his parents in the courtroom.

When the judge asked the boy's parents if they wanted to say anything on behalf of their son, the father declined and deferred any comment to Bourne.

Prosecutors said the teenager will not be tried as an adult.

McLeod declined to elaborate on what the teen faces if he's convicted, but did point out the difference between juvenile and adult court.

"In adult court, the focus is punishment," the prosecutor said outside court. "In Juvenile Court, the focus is rehabilitation. Regardless of the crime, we are very focused on the minor and the family. Some consequences are custody, some are programs and sometimes it's a combination of both."

A California Highway Patrol report said a combination of alcohol and speed contributed to the pre-dawn accident.

Alexander Michael Capozza, 17, died about 1:40 a.m. Sunday in the 5000 block of La Granada in Rancho Santa Fe when the speeding 2008 Mazda 3 crashed and rolled several times, ending up in some bushes, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office.

Another passenger, identified as 17-year-old Jamie Arnold, was not wearing a seat belt and was critically injured in the accident, while the other two 17-year-olds escaped serious injury, authorities said.

But in a statement released Wednesday by Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, Arnold -- now listed in good condition -- said he was wearing a seat belt when the car crashed.

Arnold suffered a scalp injury, concussion, minor neck injury and a right elbow contusion. He is expected to make a full recovery and return home soon.

"I would like to thank all of my family, friends and well-wishers for their support during this difficult time," the teen said in the statement. "I was in fact wearing a seat belt and fell fortunate to have walked away from this tragic accident with only minor injuries.

"My thoughts and prayers go out to the Capozza family. Alex was like a brother to me and I will miss him terribly."

CHP Sgt. Lewis Hall said his agency and the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control are trying to determine where the students had been drinking, how they may have acquired the alcohol and if adults were involved. He also said illegal drugs may have been a factor.

Bourne asked that Butler be placed under house arrest with the exception for school, but Clarke denied the request.

The next hearing in this case is scheduled for October 19.