Staunton woman charged in 1967 double murder too ill for court

-- A 60-year-old woman accused of killing two young women in a Staunton ice cream store in 1967 is so gravely ill that her first court appearance, scheduled for today, had to be postponed until March.

Sharron Diane Crawford Smith, now 60, has been charged with first-degree murder for the slaying of 20-year-old Carolyn Hevener Perry and 19-year-old Constance Smootz Hevener. Smith was 19 at the time of the murders and worked part-time at the store.

For 41 years, the case went unsolved and had received little recent publicity until investigators charged Smith last month. They have not yet disclosed what led them to charge her with the crimes.

The hearing that was supposed to have occurred in Staunton General District Court today was set to determine whether Smith needs a court-appointed lawyer or plans to hire one of her own.

-- Rex Bowman