OLATHE, Kan. -- A 16-year-old boy charged in connection with a classmate's death will remain in custody, a judge decided on Tuesday.

The 16-year-old was charged with involuntary manslaughter after a fight in which Dakota DeRemus, also 16 and from Gardner, Kan., collapsed and died.

KCTV5 News chose not to identify the 16-year-old because he was charged as a juvenile, not an adult.

In court on Tuesday, the teenager's lawyers asked the judge to release him from custody and place him on house arrest, but the judge denied the request, saying she was concerned for his safety.

Shortly after his death, DeRemus' family said DeRemus was tormented by several other boys and blamed the bullying for his death.

But in an interview with The Kansas City Star, the 16-year-old's lawyer said the teen was not a bully to DeRemus and that the boys had agreed to fight on Feb. 4.

"I don't think you'll find that these two were mad at each other, angry at each other," attorney Debra Vermillion told The Star in the first interview on behalf of the 16-year-old's family (members,) who have not spoken publicly. "They were two 16-year-old boys who agreed to go into this scuffle to see who was the coolest."

Vermillion said the teens even made up rules, such as no hitting in the face.

While some students have said on the social networking Web site Facebook that DeRemus was bullied, Gardner Edgerton school district officials said they had no record of the 16-year-old bullying DeRemus or any other student.

Deputy Superintendent Tim Yoho said no one had complained that the 16-year-old was a bully. Yoho said the district also had no reports of the 16-year-old fighting at school, on the school bus or away from school.

Vermillion, who the court appointed to represent the 16-year-old, said DeRemus and the 16-year-old just became acquainted this year and had an algebra class together.

Neighbors found DeRemus dead outside his family's home. The teen, who had a heart condition, had been hit in the chest, ribs and back during the fight with the 16-year-old, authorities said.

At least four other teens saw the fight and one recorded it on his cell phone, authorities said. The teens ran off when DeRemus collapsed.

In an interview shortly after his son's death and before Vermillion spoke out on behalf of the 16-year-old, DeRemus’ father, Scott DeRemus, had harsh words for the witnesses.

"You're no more than a murderer yourself when you're a witness to something like that and you let somebody die because you're afraid you'll get in a little bit of trouble and get grounded,” Scott DeRemus said. “I think it's sick. I will miss Dakota for the rest of my life. I hurt for my boy. I hurt for my family. We were very, very close, and I now I have an empty spot in my life that will never be filled.”

Vermillion said 16-year-old wasn't among those who fled. Some witnesses told police they saw the 16-year-old try to help DeRemus by pumping his chest and throwing cold water on his face.

Prosecutors are seeking to try the 16-year-old as an adult -- a routine move for defendants his age in this kind of case.

Shortly after DeRemus' death, the 16-year-old's initial court appearance ended with Scott DeRemus yelling at his parents and being detained by police.

He yelled at the 16-year-old's mother and stepfather: "Two years! Two years your son has been bullying my son."

Deputies pinned Scott DeRemus against a wall and later led him away in handcuffs.