Evan Drake Savoie

At twelve-years-old, they became the youngest murder defendants tried as adults in the state since 1931.

Craig Martin Sorger (February 10, 1990 — February 15, 2003) was a 13-year-old teenager from Ephrata, Washington who was murdered by his then-12-year-old tweenage friends and classmates Evan Drake Savoie (born October or November 1990) and Jake Lee Eakin (born November 14, 1990).

Sorger had been invited by the two boys to play in a park near his home.

There, Savoie dropped a large rock on his neck, knocking him to the ground.

He then repeatedly beat and stabbed him with his fists and a knife, respectively.

Eakin joined in the attack, beating Sorger in the head and legs with a tree branch.

Savoie and Eakin were both charged with first-degree murder, despite maintaining their innocence.

They were tried as adults, becoming the youngest murder defendants tried as adults in Washington state history.

Eakin eventually confessed as part of a plea bargain and agreed to testify against Savoie.

Eakin was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Savoie was initially sentenced to 26 years in prison, which was reduced to 20 years after an appeal.

Craig Sorger, of Everett, was an autistic and developmentally disabled teenager with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and a special education student from Ephrata, Washington, a small town of around 6,000 people.

He was thirteen years old at the time of his murder.

Sorger's family had moved to Ephrata two years before because he was being bullied.

He struggled socially as he was a special education student with a learning disability.

On the afternoon of February 15, 2003, two twelve-year-old tweenagers—Evan Savoie, of Ephrata, and Jake Eakin, of Moses Lake—stopped by the Sorger residence and asked Craig's mother, Lisa, if he could play with them.

According to Craig's younger brother, Keith, Evan and Jake had played with Craig several times in the past.

Eakin's family had moved to Ephrata nine years before and he met Savoie while they were both 2, and became best friends since.

Savoie was a popular student at school and the class clown, and Eakin was often picked on because of his speech disability.

Craig's mother allowed her son to go with the two boys, but told them that Craig could not play for long, because he was afraid of the dark.

According to Eakin's later testimony, the three boys went to Oasis Park, a nearby park.

After playing for a while, Savoie asked Sorger to feel the ground in order to see if it was wet.

He instructed Sorger to touch the ground and count to ten.

While Sorger was on his knees, Savoie dropped a rock "the size of a basketball" on his neck.

He then began to repeatedly beat and stab Sorger with his fists and a knife, respectively.

Eakin testified that he himself also beat Sorger in the head and legs using a fallen tree branch.

With Sorger laying motionless on the ground, the two boys went to Savoie's home.

As night fell, Sorger's mother began searching for Craig as he had not returned quickly as she had instructed.

While searching, she visited Savoie's residence, where she found out that Savoie and Eakin had already returned home and were playing video games together, although Sorger was no longer with them.

She then called 9-1-1 and went to search the park, where she was joined by Savoie and his parents, and members of the Ephrata Police Department.

A police officer soon discovered Sorger's dead body in a pile of leaves near a trail in the park.

When police questioned Savoie and Eakin that night, they claimed they had been climbing trees and playing tag in the park until around 4:30 pm, when they saw Sorger head home.

They soon changed their stories and told police that they had seen Sorger fall from a tree.

Police found no evidence that Sorger had fallen from a tree.

The coroner also pointed out stab wounds on the body, most likely caused by a knife.

Sorger's autopsy revealed that in addition to being beaten several times, he had also been stabbed 5 times in the chest and torso and at least 34 times in the head and neck.

The knife used in the attack was found thrown at a nearby river.

Savoie and Eakin were arrested on February 18, 2003, 3 days after they murdered Sorger.

Although Savoie and Eakin both claimed innocence, they were charged with first-degree murder and tried as adults.

In February 2005, The Washington Supreme Court upheld the decision to try the boys as adults by declining to hear the case.