softheart
08-24-2004, 12:05 PM
By Jonathan Martin
Seattle Times staff reporter
An experienced trial lawyer from Seattle yesterday
joined the struggling defense team for a 13-year-old
murder defendant in Ephrata.
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.
Seattle Times staff reporter
An experienced trial lawyer from Seattle yesterday
joined the struggling defense team for a 13-year-old
murder defendant in Ephrata.
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.