13-year-old murder defendant gets new attorney

By Jonathan Martin
Seattle Times staff reporter

STEVE RINGMAN / THE SEATTLE TIMES Michele Shaw

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A Grant County Superior Court judge appointed Michele Shaw to Jake Eakin's defense, replacing another court-appointed lawyer who had asked out of the case because of slow payment.

Shaw represented the Green River killer, Gary Ridgway, and has handled several high-profile juvenile murder cases, including Barry Loukaitis, a 14-year-old convicted in 1997 of killing his teacher and two classmates at a Moses Lake school.

Eakin and co-defendant Evan Savoie are the youngest murder defendants to stand trial as adults in the state's modern history. They are accused of killing a 13-year-old playmate, Craig Sorger, in an Ephrata park last winter. Each defendant has been in jail for 18 months, and they both continue to say they are innocent.

One of Eakin's lawyers, Brent De Young of Moses Lake, asked last week to be removed from the case because Grant County had stalled his pay. A story in Sunday's Seattle Times detailed Grant County's struggles to handle the complicated murder case.

	Jake Eakin

Eakin's other court-appointed lawyer, Alan White, asked Grant County Superior Court judge Ken Jorgensen to appoint Shaw because White has no experience in dealing with DNA evidence or in defending juveniles.

"I am absolutely confident that I cannot make these critical decisions for Jake during trial," White wrote in a court document filed last week.

With a caseload of 38 other open felony cases, White said he could be committing malpractice if he didn't get another, experienced lawyer to help him with Eakin's case.

Shaw said in a court filing that she serves on an American Bar Association board for lawyers specializing in juvenile cases, and has been certified by the Washington State Supreme Court to handle death penalty cases. Shaw agreed to a $75-per-hour rate — $25 less than Grant County had been paying De Young — in order to "make my offer to Grant County an attractive one," she said yesterday.

Eakin and Savoie were both 12 at the time of the murder, and were transferred out of juvenile court in March. In juvenile court, they faced a maximum sentence of nine years; as adults, they face a mandatory minimum of 20 years.

"That decision demands that these juveniles be appointed lawyers who have experience in complex murder cases, and [experience] with juveniles with learning disabilities," Shaw said. "Jake needed help."

Eakin and Savoie are scheduled for trial Sept. 14, but Shaw said she would likely ask for a delay.

Eakin's mother, Tammy Vickery, said she supported Shaw's appointment, as did her son.

"She's going to help my son," Vickery said.

Jonathan Martin: 206-464-2605 or jonathanmartin@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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