Woodbridge double murder trial begins
Elliott faces the death penalty if found guilty of shooting Robert Finch, 30, and Dana Thrall, 25, in January 2001 while they were in their Rollingwood Village town home in Woodbridge.
Attorneys questioned 78 perspective jury members Monday, and those left will be questioned on their views of the death penalty today.
Dressed in a navy blue suit, with a white shirt and tie, Elliott paid close attention to the jury selection. He seemed relaxed, made eye contact with jurors as they were questioned and smiled or laughed when light-hearted jokes were made.
The prosecution states that Elliott was jealous of Finch because of his past relationship with a woman with whom Elliott was involved.
According to court records, Elliott was obsessed with Finch’s ex-girlfriend, Rebecca Gragg, who was the mother of Finch’s two children.
Gragg, 34, told police that Elliott was jealous of her past relationships and told her that he “can’t control what happens” to those she cared about, according to court records.
Elliott, 52, has been described as a married father and a football junkie. He worked at Fort Meade in Maryland and owned a brewery in West Virginia.
A December article in the Potomac News and Manassas Journal Messenger described how Elliott and Gragg met online through Adult Friend-Finder and began a relationship that lasted more than a year. The article described how, according to court records, Elliott gave Gragg a credit card, spent thousands of dollars on her and cared for her children.
Elliott’s trial is scheduled to last three weeks. Attorneys will begin with opening arguments as soon as the jury pool has been selected.