FARMINGTON — A Wilton man accused of bludgeoning his grandmother to death told detectives that he repeatedly hit the woman in the head with a hammer while she slept, according to an affidavit filed in court Monday.
Dana “Mikey” Craney, 22, is charged with murder after the body of his 67-year-old grandmother, Joanne Goudreau, was found Saturday beneath plywood near the mobile home they shared at 1130 Weld Road in Wilton.
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Craney will remain in jail without bail following a brief initial appearance in Franklin County Superior Court on Monday. Staring wide-eyed, Craney only said “yes” a few times to the judge, but otherwise remained quiet.
Defense attorney Walter Hanstein told the court that Craney understands the complaint brought against him, but added that his client may have “significant mental health issues.”
Police went to the Weld Road home Saturday afternoon because a relative called and was having difficulty contacting Goudreau, according to Department of Public Safety spokesman Steven McCausland.
Wilton police and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department searched for Goudreau and found her body under plywood in a depression in the land on the property, according to the affidavit by Detective Randall Keaten.
The court documents include references to allegations from both Craney and Goudreau that each was abused by the other.
Keaten and Detective Michael Chavez questioned Craney, who allegedly first told police that Goudreau fled their home after an argument and that he did not know where she went. Later, he is alleged to have told detectives that he found Goudreau’s body but was afraid he would be charged with her death if he was the one who had discovered her.
After further questioning, Craney is alleged to have told police that he killed Goudreau in her sleep with a hammer because she abused him for his entire life and he “needed to end it.”
Craney told detectives that he hit Goudreau in the head with a hammer six or seven times while she slept and then brought her body behind the trailer and hid it in a depression in the yard and covered the body with a piece of plywood and some bags of trash.
Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mark Flomenbaum ruled that cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head and the manner of death to be a homicide.
If convicted of murder, Craney faces 25 years to life in prison.
On Monday, the Department of Corrections confirmed that Craney is the son of a former Lewiston man, Dana A. Craney, who was convicted of murder in 1993 and is currently serving a sentence in Maine State Prison.
Neighbors told the Morning Sentinel on Sunday that “Mikey” Craney had exhibited odd behavior, including walking along the road in camouflage with knives and swords.
Goudreau’s neighbor, Sharon Gregory, told investigators that Goudreau visited her home with blood on her face after a fight with Craney two weeks before her death. Gregory told police that a week after that visit, Goudreau told her that she needed to leave her current living arrangements, but didn’t say why. Then, on Thursday, Goudreau told Gregory that she had returned home from a temporary stay away and that Craney was hitting her.
The court documents also state that neighbor Tim Gregory, husband of Sharon Gregory, told Leighton that he heard Craney say he could kill his grandmother and get away with it.
Leighton also said that he was told by Craney’s mother, Katherine Lord, that she had spoken with Craney that afternoon and asked to talk with Goudreau, her mother. Lord told the detective that Craney claimed that he and Goudreau had gotten into an argument and that she had left.
Tim Gregory told the Morning Sentinel that he got a phone call around 11:15 a.m. Saturday from Goudreau, who said she was having problems with Craney and that she was calling him from the porch outside the house. Then in the early afternoon, Craney called their house two or three times asking about Goudreau, Gregory said. “We had a feeling something was wrong,” he said.
Lord agreed to allow police to search her property on Weld Road, where Craney and Goudreau had been living.
Police arrived there about 4:30 p.m. Saturday and soon followed footprints to the site of the body under plywood.
At the request of Assistant Attorney General Deb Cashman, Judge Susan Oram on Monday ordered a hearing on whether Craney will be allowed bail in the case. Hanstein said the defendant has no objection to a Harnish hearing, at which the prosecutor must convince the judge that there is probable cause that a crime such as murder was committed to overcome a constitutional right to bail.
Kaitlin Schroeder — 861-9252
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