Mother requests Conway, SC area cross burning house to reopen. What did the judge decide?
The mother of a man involved in a cross burning on Thanksgiving last year requested the temporary injunction on her house be taken off.
Judge William Seals granted that request for Janet Butler on Oct. 30, but not for her son. The judge amended the injunction for Butler to access the property freely but Worden Butler, her son, and his girlfriend Alexis Hartnett are banned from the property, located along the 1400 block of Corbett Drive.
Thanksgiving Day 2023 Worden Butler and Hartnett allegedly erected a cross facing their Black neighbors house and set it on fire. They were charged with harassment and Hartnett also has an assault charge.
Chris Helms, Janet Butler’s lawyer, argued the woman was not present or responsible for the couple’s actions. Janet Butler owns the home and allowed Worden Butler and his girlfriend to live there.
Neighbors told The Sun News the couple have been a nuisance for awhile. The victims of the cross burning, Shawn and Monica Williams, said they’ve yelled racial slurs among other issues. Nearby residents said they’ve been yelled at, spit on and felt threatened by Worden Butler’s and Hartnett’s actions.
In March, the house was declared a public nuisance and no one was allowed to enter, The Sun News reported.
“Whatever she wants to do as a property owner so long as it’s legal I think she can do it. What I don’t want are those two other individuals causing all the trouble to step foot on that property,” said Judge William H. Seals.
