GA - Mary & Elwyn Crocker Jr, both 14, starved, beaten & buried, Effingham Cnty, 20 Dec 2018 Arrests

[Niner]

Elwyn:
Events Event Type Event Description Court Date
Calendar criminal motion calendar - motion #55 for change of venue 04/13/2026 09:00 AM

Calendar criminal motion calendar - depositions- day 3 of 3 02/04/2026 09:00 AM

Filings:
Dkt# Doc Teyp Description Filer Filing Date Source
696 Order order setting motions hearings- 4/13/26 Anderson, Kathy 02/24/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

Just a docket update:

Mark:
Filings:
Dkt# Doc Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
517 Original Transcript 01.28.26 mark wright; motion for reconsideration Wages, Sherry 03/01/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

Docket update

Mark:
Filings
Dkt# Doc Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
518 Order order denying defendant's motion for reconsideration of sentence Anderson, Kathy 03/10/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

Elwyn:
Filings
DkT# Doc Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
698 Rule Nisi RULENISI - proposed rule 22 request for april 13th, 2026 [filed by WTOC] 03/30/2026 Manual

699 Order order continuing motions hearings Anderson, Kathy 03/31/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

Events
Event Type Event Description Court Date Calendar criminal motion calendar - motion #55 for change of venue- continued 04/13/2026 09:00 AM
[will be scheduled later]

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

No next hearing date yet.

Filings:
Dkt # Document Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
700 Order order denying rule 22 request Anderson, Kathy 04/08/2026 eFile: PeachCourt [WTOC to use electronic equipment at hearings]

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

The calendar was not updated yet.

Elwyn
Filings
Dkt# Doc Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
701 Order order setting hearing Anderson, Kathy 04/09/2026 eFile: PeachCourt
[Hearing set on 4/27/26 @ 9am].

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

Filings:
Dkt # Doc Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
702 Order order granting rule 22 request- jessica szilagyi [of The Georia Virtue-electronic equipment in hearings] Anderson, Kathy 04/13/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

703 Order order on rule 22 request- wsav granted [Kimberly Blake of WSAV-electronic equipment in hearings] 4/27/26 Anderson, Kathy 04/20/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

Events
Event Type Event Description Court Date
Calendar criminal motion calendar - status 04/27/2026 09:00 AM

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

No updates for Elwyn

Mark:
Filings:
Dkt# Doc Type Description Filer Filing Date Source
519 Notice of Appeal Sincox, Allan 04/02/2026 eFile: PeachCourt

link: Document Access and Electronic Filing

 

[Niner]

Monday, April 27th:
*Status Hearing (@ 9am ET) - GA – Mary Frances Crocker (14) & Elwyn John Crocker, Jr. (‘JR’) (14) (Mary died Oct. 18, 2018, Elwyn died about Nov. 30, 2016 & both discovered Dec. 20, 2018 buried in backyard, Guyton) – *Elwyn John Crocker, Sr. (50/now 57) (“father”) arrested (12/20/18), charged (1/29/19), indicted (3/12/19) & arraigned (4/17/19) & re-arraigned (2/19/20) with 2 counts of malice murder, 2 counts of felony murder for the deaths of Elwyn, Jr. & Mary, 1 count of sexual battery, 4 counts of cruelty to children, 2 counts of false imprisonment & 2 counts of concealing a death. Plead not guilty (2/19/20). No bond. DA will seek DP. Effingham County
Judge Matthew K. Hube presiding. ADA Matthew Breedon. Defense attorney Jerilyn Bell, Samuel Carlos Wood, Kara Stangl, Stephen R. Yekel & Mary F. Dayton.
Court info from 3/15/19 thru 1/27/26 reference post #612 here:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/t...ngham-cnty-20-dec-2018-arrests.406245/page-31
2/2/26 Update: Due to weather condition, no deposition hearing. 2/3/26 Update: [692] Miscellaneous. Clerks hearing notes. Depositions before Judge Hube. Court reporter Sherry Wages. Robert Busbee, Christine Barker & Matthew Breedon for the state. Jerilyn Bell & Kara Stangl for the defense. Defendant present, currently in Effingham Co. jail. Kimberly Wright present, attorney Elisa Burnum present. Courtroom closed to the public. Next depositions hearing continues on 2/4/26 @ 9am.
2/4/26 Docket update: [693] Miscellaneous. Clerks' hearing notes. Depositions before Judge Hube. Christine Barker & Matthew Breedon for the State. Jerilyn Bell & Kara Stangl for the defense. Defendant present, currently in Effingham Co. Jail. Capt. Rick Dailey present. Courtroom closed to the public. 2/9/26 Docket update: [694] Leave of Absence [on 2/13/26, 3/12, 3/23, 3/27 & 4/9/26] for Jerilyn Bell filed. 2/16/26 Docket update: [695] Leave of Absence for Kara Stangl from 3/12-3/13/26.
2/24/26 Docket update: [696] Order setting motions hearing re change of venue (#55) on 4/13/26 @ 9am. 3/16/26 Docket update: [697] State's discovery disclosure filed by Jillian Gibson.
3/30/26 Docket update: [698] Rule Nisi-Proposed Rule 22 request by WTOC for 4/13/26. 3/31/26 Docket update: [699] Order continuing motions hearings on 4/13/26 by Judge Hube.
4/8/26 Docket update: [700] Order denying Rule 22 request by WTOC to use electronic equipment at hearings.
4/9/26 Docket update: [701] Order setting hearing. Motions hearing set on 4/27/26 @ 9am re change of venue motion. 4/11/26 Docket update: [702] Order granting Rule 22 request-Jessica Szilagyi of The Georgia Virtue-electronic equipment in hearings by Judge Kathy Anderson, 4/20/26 Docket update: [703] Order granting on Rule 22 request Kimberly Blake of WSAV-electronic equipment in hearings by Judge Kathy Anderson.
*Kimberly Renee Wright (50/now 57) (“step-grandma”) – Plead guilty (9/16/25) & sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
*Mark Anthony “Tony” Wright (31/now 38) (bro of Candice) – Plead guilty (8/29/25) & sentenced (11/14/25) to 80 years in prison. Has filed motion for new trial (12/9/25). Motion hearing to reconsider sentencing on 1/28/26. 3/10/26: Motion to reconsider sentencing denied.
*Roy Anthony Prater (55/now 62) - 10/24/19 Update: Plead guilty. Sentencing delayed until all defendants’ cases are complete. Will testify against the other 3 defendants.
*Candice Heather Crocker (33/now 40) (“step-mom”) - 10/15/20 Update: Plead guilty to 2 counts of malice murder, 2 counts of cruelty to child, to 2 counts of concealing a death & 2 counts of false imprisonment. Rest of the charges were Nolle Prosequi (dismissed). Sentenced to life without parole & credit for time served (12/20/18 to 10/21/20) to be served concurrently. In plea deal she must testify against the other 3 defendants.

 

[fsngruv]

This is a long Facebook post from the Georgia Independent, it is a media source.

Rincon, GA. Community Group | 🏛️ MAJOR UPDATE: Alleged Negotiated Plea Deal Reached in Crocker Case | Facebook

🏛️ MAJOR UPDATE: Alleged Negotiated Plea Deal Reached in Crocker Case Tomorrow, Monday, April 27th, marks a significant—and controversial—turning point in the long-running Effingham County tragedy....

www.facebook.com

" MAJOR UPDATE: Alleged Negotiated Plea Deal Reached in Crocker Case

Tomorrow, Monday, April 27th, marks a significant—and controversial—turning point in the long-running Effingham County tragedy.

District Attorney Busbee is expected to officially recommend a negotiated plea deal for Elwyn Crocker Sr. at the Effingham County Courthouse. This deal would effectively remove the death penalty from the table, ensuring Crocker spends the rest of his life behind bars without the possibility of execution by the state.

The decision comes nearly eight years after the heartbreaking discovery in that Effingham County backyard. While the news is sure to spark outrage, legal experts and officials point to several key factors behind the recommendation:

Consistency in Sentencing: Other family members involved in the torture and deaths of Mary and Elwyn Jr. received similar life-sentence deals.

Declining Health: Reports indicate that Elwyn Crocker Sr.’s health is deteriorating rapidly.

Fiscal Responsibility: By accepting a plea, the state avoids the "hundreds of thousands of dollars" in taxpayer money typically spent on the decades-long appeals process that follows a death penalty conviction. Crocker is expected to die in prison long before those legal battles would have concluded.

We know this news will be difficult for many to stomach. There are already calls for "heads to roll," as many in our community feel that anything less than the maximum punishment is a failure of justice for the two innocent lives lost.

However, for others, this brings a definitive end to a horrific chapter, ensuring the defendant never breathes free air again without dragging the victims' names through years of further litigation.

As this legal saga draws to a close, our thoughts remain where they belong: with the victims.

Bless Elwyn Crocker Jr. and Mary Crocker. After years of suffering and a long road to justice, may these two children finally rest peacefully. "


Then this morning, I saw this...

Facebook

www.facebook.com

"MEDIA ADVISORY

District Attorney Robert Busbee will hold a press conference on Monday (4/27) outside the Effingham County Courthouse regarding the Crocker case.

The press conference is expected to begin between 9:30 AM and 9:45 AM. Members of the media are advised to arrive and be set up by 9:15 AM.

We will make an effort to live stream the press conference on this page. A public statement will also be posted following the event."

For a completely unrelated reason, I actually visited the crocker neighborhood yesterday. My friend and I remarked, how Sr. deserves the DP.

 

[fsngruv]

Facebook

www.facebook.com

 

[fsngruv]

Elwyn Crocker Enters Guilty Plea: 3 Life Sentences Plus 120 Years • The Georgia Virtue

Elwyn Crocker Sr. entered a guilty plea Monday in exchange for a sentence that takes death penalty off the table. - South Georgia Local News

www.thegeorgiavirtue.com

"Elwyn John Crocker Sr. entered a guilty plea Monday in exchange for a sentence that takes death penalty off the table for the murder of his two children. Crocker appeared in court in Effingham County with his attorneys in the courtroom of Judge Matthew Hube...

Effingham County Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie, his chief deputy, and a number of investigators from the sheriff’s office were present in court for Monday’s proceedings.

The hearing was scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. but attorneys immediately requested a brief fifteen minute recess. Following the recess, Jerilyn Bell of the Capital Defender’s Office requested another recess of thirty minutes, which was granted.

At 9:50 a.m., defense counsel returned to the courtroom to announce that they were continuing to work to make progress with Crocker, noting that she believed they “were making headway,” were aware of the time constraints of the court, and were working as diligently as possible.

A few minutes later, Crocker entered the courtroom and continued completing paperwork with his attorneys.

Busbee announced that the state and defense reached an agreement for Crocker to enter a guilty plea.

Busbee said the state had agreed to a plea for a number of reasons, but prefaced that the plea offer does not “reflect any suggestion or intent by the state that the defendant deserves mercy or leniency of any kind.”

“There’s no punishment available that would reflect justice for these children. This reflects the reality that this case has lingered without resolution,” Busbee said. He then outlined a few changes in the case:

Kimberly Wright – has gone blind during the time in custody and is unable to authenticate evidence
Roy Prater – recently died in custody died. He flipped early on in the case and offered a plethora of testimony for investigators, but none of the evidence he provided the state can be used in trial.
Trial Team – Two assistant district attorneys recently left the cas – one to retirement and one to U.S Attorney’s Office. Busbee said that did not cost the state evidence, but it does contribute to a delay.
Busbee said the decision was one where he was required to decide if they risk losing more evidence or offer Life without the possibility of parole and move forward in resolving the case."

I'm sure there will be many more news reports.

 

[GeorgiaRai]

"...for others, this brings a definitive end to a horrific chapter, ensuring the defendant never breathes free air again without dragging the victims' names through years of further litigation."

I'm in this camp. I'll be glad for these people to be soon-forgotten and languishing in prison.

 

[lisette]

Maybe he will receive justice in prison… Inmates will not be a fan if/when they discover what he did to those poor children.

 

[fsngruv]

Maybe he will receive justice in prison… Inmates will not be a fan if/when they discover what he did to those poor children.

I'm pretty sure he's being housed in Dooley with prisoners who commit the same crimes as him, so I think you are right. I'm sure many of those inmates, possibly even this defendant were abused in their youth too, and may seek their own justice upon him.

It is unfortunate this case has carried on so long, it appears there were many reasons. I've heard locals air frustration over this case and wishing the DP on him, and some have even offered their own ideas and methods. It is such a small town and to make national news for such a terrible crime, I can understand. I myself don't find myself supporting the DP much, but thought this case was deserving. Just as I think Tanner Horner should get the dp. But like was mentioned by the states attorney busbee, that would open the door for appeals and that would mean many of the details about what happened to these children would come out, and that really shouldn't happen. Their innocence should be protected, even if those closest didn't care to protect it. We as a public can. They shouldn't be further victimized in the public when Elwyn Sr. will likely die before he can even be executed.

 

[Niner]

I too am glad this case is coming to a close. Should have been DP, but I can see why the DA has changed the sentencing. Did not realize Prater has died. Too bad about Kimberly, I guess karma comes in different forms!

Now all I need is the sentencing date! or was he sentenced today to life plus 120 years? I will go read that article...

edited to add - yes the Judge sentenced today. Case closed - finally....