Cline Court Battle Wrapping Up By: Stephanie M. Mangino The Winchester Star A long-term court battle between Patsy Cline’s brother and sister came close to reaching its end Thursday in Winchester Circuit Court. Only the final accounting and bill-paying remain in the settlement of the estate left when Cline’s mother, Hilda V. Hensley, died on Dec. 10, 1998. Cline, the voice behind pop-country hits like “Sweet Dreams,” and “Crazy,” died in a 1963 Tennessee airplane crash at age 30. She was raised in Winchester and started her singing career here. In a brief hearing, Judge John E. Wetsel Jr. dispatched with the few matters that remained after more than five years of legal wrangling between siblings Sylvia M. Wilt and Samuel L. Hensley. Wetsel told estate administrator Charles R. Alton to partially distribute the cash within the estate, with Wilt and Hensley each receiving $20,000. He also dismissed a 2002 civil suit Hensley filed against his sister, claiming she had taken items improperly from the estate. Attorneys have 21 days to appeal that decision. Wilt said Thursday that all the litigation has left her bitter. She said she probably will have to sell her Shenandoah County home to pay legal fees. “I’m pretty well strapped,” Wilt said. However, she has no plans to part with items that belonged to her mother or Cline, who died when Wilt was 19. The parties in the estate settlement are scheduled to meet again Sept. 23 to talk about the final accounting of estate assets and expenses.

Originally Published In The Winchester Star On August 20, 2004







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