Convicted killer Anthony 'Rocco" Franklin seeks new trial

Francis Scarcella, The Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa.
·1 min read

Jan. 12—Anthony "Rocco" Franklin wants a new trial due to what he says was ineffective counsel that led to his 2018 murder conviction.

In recently filed court documents, Franklin claims his attorney, Brian Ulmer, of Lewisburg, did not listen to him during the trial and did not call witnesses on Franklin's behalf.

Franklin, 78, of Harrisburg, was convicted of killing Frank Spencer, 46, of Millville, in an execution-style slaying in July 2012. Franklin was sent to prison, along with his daughter and Spencer's ex-wife, Maria Sanutti Spencer, 55, of Selinsgrove.

Former state trooper Cpl. Shawn Williams, now the Shikellamy School District police chief, said both Franklin and Sanutti-Spencer, plotted Frank Spencer's death and both arrived at his home while either Franklin or Sanutti-Spencer shot Frank Spencer from a wooded area while the other one-shot the man at point-blank range.

Sanutti-Spencer is also appealing her case. She was granted a two-day hearing late last year where she told a senior judge her then-attorney, Christian Hoey, of Philadelphia, also did not listen to her during her trial. Sanutti-Spencer said she wanted to testify on her own behalf but Hoey did not call her to the stand.

Sanutti-Spencer awaits a court ruling on whether or not she will receive a new trial. Franklin will now await a decision about his Post Conviction Relief Act motion.

Both Franklin and Sanutti-Spencer were sentenced to life in prison without parole. Franklin is currently housed at SCI-Somerset, while Sanutti Spencer is incarcerated at SCI-Muncy.