FRANKFORT, KY (March 17, 2025) – Attorney General Russell Coleman announced today the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld the capital sentence of Kentucky's longest-held death row inmate who was convicted more than 40 years ago for a brutal triple homicide.
On death row since 1980, Karu Gene White has lost repeated appeals in state and federal courts. His most recent appeal was rejected Friday by a 2-1 Sixth Circuit panel.
In 1979, White and two juvenile accomplices used a crow bar to beat a blind seventy-five-year-old, and two other seniors while robbing them in Breathitt County. The elderly Kentuckians, Charlie Gross, 75, his wife Lula Gross, 74, and Lula's brother, Sam Chaney, 79, were killed inside the small general store they operated. The attack was so violent that the Coroner, Kentucky State Trooper, and detective all testified it was the most brutal murder they had worked. The Coroner described the scene as a slaughterhouse.
"This violent criminal committed these horrific murders more than 40 years ago, and he's spent the decades since attempting to dodge the justice lawfully delivered by a jury. This ruling upholds the jury's verdict, gives relief to the victims' families and clears the way for long-overdue justice," said Attorney General Coleman.
"This brutal killer stole my grandparents. Then he took 40 years of my life as he tried to escape justice," said Mary Lou Herald, the Grosses' granddaughter. "After all this time, we are hopeful the sentence will be carried out and justice will finally be done. I'm grateful to the Office of the Attorney General and every person that worked over the years to ensure my grandparents and family were never forgotten."
Assistant Solicitor General Elizabeth Hedges argued the case before the Sixth Circuit on behalf of the Warden. Erica Paske with the Attorney General's Office of Victims Advocacy provided assistance to the families of the victim.
Read the Sixth Circuit Opinion.
Background
In March 2024, Attorney General Coleman filed a motion with the Franklin Circuit Court to end a nearly 15-year ban on the lawful imposition of the death penalty in Kentucky. His filing followed the publication of amended regulations from Governor Andy Beshear's Administration that brought the Commonwealth into full compliance with the court's 2010 ruling.
The Kentucky Supreme Court opened the door for the Franklin Circuit Court to reach a decision, and General Coleman filed a motion in December asking for the Franklin Circuit to rule on the motion to end the death penalty ban.
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