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FIND OUT HOW TO KNOCK
CARLSON OFF HIS PEDESTAL, A4
Criminal summons issued to
owner of trashed house , A7
The Anderson News
Setting standards of excellence since 1877
Lawrenceburg, Kentucky Wednesday, June 15, 2011 75 cents
Photos By Ben Carlson
Herman Case, right, tells murderer Gary Bancroft, left, that he dug Renee Mobley ‘a dog’s grave’ after slashing her throat last fall. That comment was
ollowed by a smile from Bancroft, which nearly ignited an already emotional courtroom Thursday afternoon. Shown with Bancroft is public defender
cott Getsinger.
Father to daughter’s killer:
‘I hope you burn in hell’
Courtroom nearly erupts after murderer smiles during sentencing
Murder
suspect
indicted,
still at large
By Ben Carlson
General Manager
The man wanted in connection
with the murder of an
Anderson County
woman earlier
this year has
yet to be caught,
but has now
been indicted.
An Anderson
Cram
County Grand
Jury on June 7
charged Terrance
Cram, 49, with murder,
tampering with physical evidence
and fraudulent use of a
credit card.
Cram allegedly murdered
Tena McNeely, 49, on Jan. 3 at
her residence on Clay Burgin
Road, about 14 miles west of
Lawrenceburg.
McNeely apparently rented
a room to Cram for about five
years.
McNeely died of a brain
injury from blunt impact,
investigators said at the time,
and may have lived from minutes
to hours following her
assault.
“The murder was brutal,”
said Det. Kevin Calhoon of the
See AT LARGE, Page A2
By Ben Carlson
General Manager
Moments away from
being sentenced to 70 years
in prison, Gary Bancroft listened
as family members of
the woman he murdered had
their say.
Then Bancroft
did the
unthinkable:
He smiled.
That
momentary
smirk nearly
ignited an
already tension-wracked
courtroom last Thursday
afternoon as deputies and
family members had to
restrain the slain woman’s
father after he rose to his feet
and yelled at Bancroft.
Calendar ........................ A12
Church ........................... A13
Classifieds ....................B4-6
Court ............................. A14
Obituaries ....................... A6
“I hear Renee cry, ‘Help
me, daddy!’ when I try to
sleep at night.”
—Benny Mobley
Index
Vol. 135 No. 12 • Two sections
Opinion ........................A4-5
Real Estate ...................B7-8
Society .......................... A12
Sports ..........................B1-3
Way We Were ................ A10
Bancroft’s sentencing for
last fall’s murder of Mount
Eden resident Renee Mobley
figured to be filled with
drama as Mobley’s family
took turns delivering victim
impact statements.
It was that
and more.
Three family
members took
turns reading
statements,
including Mobley’s
mother, an
uncle and the
father of her
two children.
“I don’t forgive you, I
will never forgive you and I
hope you burn in hell,” said
Mobley’s uncle, Larry Mob-
See MURDER, Page A2
Benny Mobley has to be restrained by family members after Gary Bancroft
smiled while listening to another family member’s impact statement
Thursday afternoon in Anderson Circuit Court.
City zoning violations to be declared civil offenses
Fines could more than double if violation appealed
By Meaghan Downs
Staff Writer
The Lawrenceburg City
Council on Monday approved
the first reading of a new
ordinance granting its code
enforcement board the
authority to hear and enforce
contested zoning violations.
The council also discussed
amended cemetery rules,
including what can and cannot
be placed
at gravesites in
Lawrenceburg
Cemetery.
Zoning violations,
including
violations
of the city’s
sign ordinance, Myles
could be classified
as civil offenses and
enforced by the five-member
enforcement board.
Ordinance violations such
as littering, nuisances and
health and sanitation have
already been classified as civil
offenses, and enforceable by
the board.
The language of the proposed
ordinance states that
the board can enforce “any
ordinance of the local government,
including any zoning
ordinance or regulation, by
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classifying a violation of the
ordinance as a civil offense.”
Robert Myles, city attorney,
said the ordinance was a
matter of making the process
more streamlined and efficient.
“It was always enforceable
through the district court,” he
said, “but as you can imagine,
they’re busy with criminal
matters and the state legisla-
See CIVIL, Page A2
Relay set
for Friday
From staff reports
Anderson County’s Relay
for Life celebrates its 10th year
of its fight against cancer on
June 17-18 from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
at the American Legion City
Park in Lawrenceburg.
The
American
Cancer Society’s
premiere
event,
the Relay
for Life,
raises funds
for cancer
research, advocacy and other
programs and services, as well
as recognizes cancer survivors
and their families and friends.
Last year, the Relay for Life
raised $100,200 for the American
Cancer Society. This year,
Relay for Life’s goal is to raise
$108,000.
The two-day event will kick
off at 6 p.m. with activities
such as a survivor’s walk, testimonials
and entertainment
featuring live bands and a live
auction.
The luminaria ceremony,
which features lit candles
bearing the names of those
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win an online
subscription!
Inside ..
Relay for Life
schedule, A6
Information on
luminaries,
fundraisers and
teams, A11
See RELAY, Page A6

A2 | Wednesday, June 15, 2011 | The Anderson News FROM THE FRONT
MURDER
Continued from Page A2
ley, reading a statement
on behalf of the girl’s
father, Benny.
“Renee was my life.
For 31 years she was with
us every day, until you
intruded in our community
and took her away
from us.
“You should here her
daughter cry for her at
night. I hear Renee cry,
‘Help me, daddy!’ when I
try to sleep at night.”
Herman Case, who
had two children with
Mobley and lived with
her for 18 years, went
next. He referred to a
report that Bancroft
attempted to dig her a
grave near the former
Western High School
after slicing her throat,
stuffing her into a trash
bag and hiding her
remains in the bathroom
of his Bardstown Road
home.
“You dug her a dog’s
grave,” Case said.
That comment apparently
made Bancroft
grin.
“Don’t you smile …”
Case said, then stopped
speaking when Mobley’s
father, Benny, momentarily
rose to his feet
before being restrained
by family members and
nearby deputies.
Overcome with tears
and wearing a T-shirt
emblazoned with a photo
of her dead daughter,
Mobley’s mother, Katie,
spoke last and recounted
the times when Bancroft
would show up her home
hungry and she would
provide him with food.
“You need help,” Katie
Mobley said, “but it’s too
late for my baby. You
took my only child.”
Katie Mobley added
that her mother passed
away after her daughter’s
murder.
“She went into a
depression, but kissed
[Renee’s] photo every
day,” Katie Mobley said.
Circuit Court Judge
Photo by Ben Carlson
Katie Mobley tells murderer Gary Bancroft that she hopes he hears her dead daughter’s voice when he tries to sleep at night.
Bancroft, who pleaded guilty to murdering Renee Mobley last fall when he slashed her throat, stuffed her remains in a trash
bag and hid it in the bathroom of his Bardstown Road trailer, was sentenced to 70 years in prison Thursday afternoon in Anderson
Circuit Court.
Charles Hickman then
handed Bancroft to the
maximum sentence
allowed by law — 50
years for murder and 20
more for being a persistent
felony offender.
Hickman said Bancroft’s
crime was among
the worst he’s ever seen.
“The facts of this case
are the most cruel and
depraved I have ever
witnessed,” Hickman
said, adding that Bancroft
should “search his
heart and ask yourself
what kind of hate led
you to commit this horrific
act.”
Bancroft was offered
but chose not to speak
before being sentenced.
Before the sentencing,
about 30 of Mobley’s
family members lined
up on the second floor
of the Anderson County
Courthouse, and had to
pass through a metal
detector before entering
the courtroom.
While awaiting
Bancroft’s arrival, the
family sat in groups, the
younger ones chatting
and passing out sticks of
gum, the older ones talking
quietly and waiting
for their turn to speak
out against the man who
admittedly killed their
loved one.
Bancroft entered the
room wearing shackles
and an orange jump suit,
and did not appear to
make eye contact with
any of Mobley’s family
members.
Bancroft, seated next
to his public defender,
mostly stared straight
ahead as he waited, or
looked at the floor.
Following the sentencing,
Sheriff Troy
Young, who had no
fewer than six deputies
in the courtroom, asked
everyone to remain
inside the courtroom
until Bancroft had exited
the building.
Outside, family members
cried, hugged and
said they were happy
Bancroft received the
maximum sentence.
Some, though, said it
wasn’t nearly enough.
“An eye for an eye, a
tooth for a tooth,” said
one uncle as he walked
outside. “That wasn’t
justice.”
Comment at theandersonnews.com.
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AT LARGE
Continued from Page A2
Kentucky State Police.
A manhunt for Cram ensued,
and investigators said he had been
using McNeely’s credit cards as he
traveled through Tennessee, Georgia
and Florida.
Along with allegedly killing
McNeely, Cram also apparently
locked up a half dozen of her cats
in an outbuilding with no food or
water.
They were rescued and
later adopted out by the East
Shelbyville Animal Clinic, where
McNeely was a longtime customer.
McNeely was a daughter of
Trooper James McNeely, who died
in April 1972 while on a flood rescue
mission in Franklin County.
His body was never recovered.
Comment at theandersonnews.
com.
1 (888) 698-2221
CIVIL
Continued from Page A1
ture thought this would be a good
avenue.”
The ordinance would give individuals
the right to come before
the code enforcement board or
accept the fine, rather than appeal
to the district court.
As a civil offense, zoning violations
penalties would range
from $10-$150 if citations are not
appealed, and $25-250 if the violation
were contested.
Myles said the goal was to get
problems fixed, not drag people in
front of the board.
“Our goal is to work with people
and get them to say, ‘This is an
eyesore, we need to clean this up,’”
he said.
“It really is intended to be an
arm to assist people.”
According to Myles, most citations
issued by code enforcement
officers regard the proper maintenance
of property.
The Anderson News
(USPS 025-300)
Ben Carlson, General Manager/Editor
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Meaghan Downs, Staff Writer
The Anderson News is published each Wednesday. Periodical postage is paid at Lawrenceburg, Ky.
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Advertising deadline is noon Monday.
The code enforcement board,
according to Myles, was formed
four or five years ago in compliance
with a state statute dictating
cities to enact a code enforcement
ordinance.
The board includes members
Gaile Humston, Jason McRoberts,
Kenneth Bottoms, Bob Ware and
Sandy Whitaker.
No hearings have yet been presented
to the board.
The ordinance will undergo a
second reading and public hearing
July 11, and if passed, will go into
effect late July or early August.
In addition to approving
the first reading of the civil
offense classification, the council
approved a first reading of the
amended cemetery regulations.
The amended rules allow for
a “designated landscape area”
extending 12 inches from the face
of the monument to be the sole
responsibility of the cemetery
patron.
Any personal items shall be
allowed within this area, but subject
to certain restrictions:
• Confederate flags will be
restricted to display only on the
burial site of a Confederate solider
buried within Lawrenceburg
Cemetery.
• Temporary American flags
may be placed one week before
a federal or national holiday, and
will be removed one week later.
Patrons may request permission
to display other flags.
• No shepherd’s hooks would be
allowed in the designated landscape
area, but one can be placed
at either end of the monument.
• Living plants, flowers or
shrubs may be planted, but cannot
reach a height greater than 3
feet.
• Artificial flowers, wreaths and
decorations may be placed on the
ground at any grave site during
the Christmas, Easter, Memorial
Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s
Day holidays and can also be
placed for 30 days after a new
internment.
Comment at theandersonnews.
com.
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