By MELINDA J. OVERSTREET
for Glasgow News 1
Outside, the shining sun in a clear blue sky was warming this early November day to temperatures in the low 60s, but inside, throughout the courtroom where the final sentencing of Cody Bacon took place Friday afternoon, hearts were clearly not bright, as the hurting was nearly palpable.
Bacon, 23, pleaded guilty on Sept. 18 to two counts of murder and two counts of wanton endangerment in relation to the deaths of his brother, David A. Pace, 24, and Pace’s wife, Brittany R. Pace, 22, on Sept. 2, 2021, at the couple’s Glasgow home. Their two sons, then ages 4 and 6, were in the room at the time the shootings took place.
The arrest citation states: “Bacon stated that he had shot his brother and sister-in-law because he was tired of his brother and sister-in-law arguing/fussing with the children. Bacon stated that there were two juveniles behind him when he fired the gun. Bacon stated he emptied a 9 mm handgun of ammo on his brother and sister-in-law.”
Circuit Judge John T. Alexander, toward the conclusion of a nearly hourlong proceeding in Barren Circuit Court, accepted the sentences recommended by Commonwealth’s Attorney John Gardner as part of a plea agreement. Those sentences were life imprisonment without the possibility of parole until at least 25 years has been served for each of the murder charges and five years’ imprisonment for each count of wanton endangerment, to be served concurrently.
That 25 year minimum includes the time he has already served at the Barren County Detention Center, where he has remained lodged since the day of the deaths that he called the police to report.
Six individuals submitted written victim impact statements, and five of those chose to go to the prosecutor’s table to read them aloud during the proceeding, often with tears in their eyes and shaky voices and frequently eliciting audible sobs and sniffs from those on each side of the aisle in the gallery and elsewhere.
First was Bacon’s mother and David A. Pace’s mother, Amy Layne, who could barely read the words in front of her at first as emotions washed over her.
“As a mother, nothing can prepare you for the loss of a child, and in an instant, I lost two sons,” she said. “I try to find the words to describe the emptiness that I feel every day, but none ever seem enough. I struggle daily with the what ifs and the whys. … I miss my son tremendously. I’m not sure I miss the man he become, but I miss the little boy that I knew. I miss his hugs; I miss the laughter.”
Her son at the defense table removed his glasses to wipe his eyes as she continued.
“You were my youngest, my chubby-cheeked little boy, and I will always, always, be your mother. Nothing will ever change that love,” Layne said.
She said no one ever wants to hear about domestic violence, but it happened, and she hated that he had to see it.
She said people ask her how it feels, and the answer she has is this: “My soul was broken that day. My heart numbed, my mind confused. Time passes, and the emptiness remains.”
The others who spoke were Glenn Dennison, father of Brittany Pace; Tonya Dennison, Brittany’s sister; Steve Parker, with his wife Amanda Parker next to him, Brittany’s stepfather and mother; and David L. Pace, father of the late David A. Pace. The other statement was submitted by Christopher Pace.
Glenn Dennison said his world completely changed on that day when he got the call that his baby girl who texted or called him daily to check on him tell him he loved her and his son-in-law he thought of as a son were gone.
Knowing he would never see them or ever hear their voices again is “unbearable,” he said.
He said there could have been other solutions to whatever was going on that day
“I just hope you realize just how many people you really hurt on that day,” he said, adding that two years after the fact, he was nowhere near forgiving Bacon, and he knew he’d never forget it.
Tonya Dennison said her sister had been her best friend since she was a year old, and she didn’t think she could ever adequately express everything she wanted or needed to in one statement.
Nothing could ever bring back what they shared or her unique laugh that one of Brittany’s sons has now.
“Nothing ever brings back the mom and dad for those two babies,” she said.
She said she felt no sympathy for Bacon but she did for his family and particularly his mother and offered her condolences. She said she hoped Bacon spent the rest of his days with the guilt eating at him.
Steve Parker, with his wife Amanda seated beside him, read for more than 10 minutes with mixed bits of messaging throughout. He said he hoped they could begin healing now, although he didn’t think they every completely could.
He said Bacon had hurt so many people and changed their lives and their mental health with his actions.
“You have affected so many families …, it feels like you have ripped our hearts out and stomped the life out of them,” Parker said.
He said that in the two-plus years the case has been pending, they’ve never missed a court date, and he believed that Bacon had never shown any remorse until this day, sitting there with the same stare at and them and others with a “stone-cold look on his face.”
He said his heart is broken for all his family members and Bacon’s, and particularly his two grandsons who lost their parents, and he spoke in particular of the impacts on the mothers of the deceased couple.
“You put a gun in your hand that you never should have had anyway and shot her nine times, close range, and her husband, your brother David, was shot twice at close range, with our grandsons standing right behind you,” Parker said, adding gratitude that he didn’t turn the gun on the boys.
He discussed further the impact on the mental health of his family, “so when I say our lives were hell, they were hell,” and he hoped no one ever had to go through anything like this again.
“I’ve got a question for you, Mr. Bacon. Why did you have to shoot Brittany nine times? That was an execution,” he said, theorizing that Bacon must have had more anger or hatred toward her than toward his brother.
“There are so many unanswered questions here, it’s just hard to comprehend and understand everything that’s happened over the last two-plus years,” Parker said, adding that he also hoped Bacon’s conscience would eat away at him.
He spoke of a loving and forgiving god to whom he hoped Bacon would sincerely confess to become a Christian.
“It’s not my place or my family’s place to judge you, but we’ve all got hatred in our hearts toward you, and I’m asking Jesus every day to remove this hatred out of all our hearts and forgive you,” he said.
He concluded by noting that this past Friday would have been Brittany’s 25th birthday, and it seems that it gets harder instead of easier every time they go to her grave.
He said that ultimately, he hoped Bacon would find peace, get the help he needs and take advantage of all the programs offered to him while he’s serving his time, and he would continue praying for him.
He said he wished he or they had left that day instead of having it come to this.
“You put the law, judge, prosecution, jury all in your hands when you committed this horrible crime,” Parker said.
He said still couldn’t believe that Bacon went outside after he “gunned them down” and left the children there “to stare at their deceased parents.”
“What do you think that did to them mentally?” Parker asked.
But then in closing he said they wished him the best and hoped he could make a learning experience from it.
David L. Pace’s statement began with a Bible verse about forgiveness and told Bacon this had been a tragic event for everyone, but he had the strength and ability to honestly say he had forgiven him, but that didn’t mean that what he did was OK.
He said he had come to realize that Bacon had suffered the loss of his brother and sister-in-law, bears the weight of causing their deaths and now the consequences of that.
“All of this is very sad to me. I take no pleasure in this …,” the father of the deceased David A. Pace said. “Cody, you need to forgive yourself.”
He said he hadn’t felt anger or hatred toward Bacon but rather felt and still feels sorry for him.
“I have felt plenty of pain for everyone involved in this, even you,” he said, adding that he continues to pray for him and that he’s on the prayer list at Pace’s church, and he hopes Bacon will come to love Jesus.
He concluded that he prays for all involved and suffering through this and he hopes they hear him when he says that we are to forgive each other, no matter what the consequences.
After all the statements were read, Alexander announced that he was accepting the recommended sentence, adding that he would not impose a fine or court costs but reiterated that Bacon is not eligible for probation or shock probation, as noted when he entered his guilty plea.
The judge spoke briefly of how actions like Bacon’s reverberate throughout other lives, but he didn’t see that it would be of benefit for him to take extra time to bring that point home at that point.
Alexander acknowledged the work that attorneys on both sides – Lauren Hunter and Wesley Boyarski for the defense and the commonwealth’s attorney – to find a resolution that was both sufficient to address the enormity of the crimes while also being fair and not representing revenge. Hunter had made similar comments earlier and Gardner had pointed out that the victim’s families had approved of the recommended sentence.
He said he could understand “a little bit” about all the emotions expressed with all that happened, though of course not to the extent of those directly involved, and he appreciated hearing the discussions on forgiveness, because if it cannot be found, “it eats away, it eats away, it eats away.”
The only thing those involved can do about the tragedy now is to try not let it continue to cause more damage than has already been done.
“There is no way to undo it, obviously. I don’t think there’s a person in the room wouldn’t undo it, right?” Alexander asked, looking directly at Bacon, who gave a quick nod in agreement.
He told Bacon it was clear through the proceedings that, he still had people who love him, prompting another nod, and that it would do well for him to keep that in mind.
At that point, as he was about to adjourn, the judge then granted the request of Layne’s voiced after she read her statement to be able to hug her son before his departure. She spoke with him quietly for a few minutes as they sat on the front row of the jury box together, and she asked one of the multiple bailiffs present to make sure it was OK before she embraced him for a few minutes.
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