A mentally disabled 12-year-old boy was sentenced Tuesday to 13 years of state custody for setting a fire that killed eight people.
Ray DeFord, who has a mental age of 7, was found responsible - the juvenile court equivalent of guilty - last month for setting the fire that killed five children and three adults in his apartment complex in Aloha, a suburb west of Portland."I'm still convinced he has no idea what he did," Circuit Judge Timothy Alexander said at Tuesday's sentencing. "That's precisely what makes Ray so dangerous."
A prosecutor argued Ray's disability hadn't affected his ability to realize risks and consequences.
In court, the boy chewed gum, turning several times to look at relatives of the victims.
Alexander had earlier ruled the boy responsible for one count of arson, eight counts of felony murder and eight counts of criminally negligent homicide.
Defense lawyers had argued that Ray couldn't understand the consequences of his actions because of brain damage caused at least in part by beatings from his father.