LAKEPORT — Jury selection started for the double-homicide trial of Clearlake resident Robby Alan Beasley on Wednesday.
The process to seat jurors is expected to last until the end of next week.
Beasley, 32, faces three felonies in connection with the shooting deaths of Maine residents Frank and Yvette Maddox, whose partially decomposed bodies were found at the bottom of an embankment in Lower Lake in March 2010.
Authorities allege Beasley shot the couple several months after recruiting them to assist in a marijuana operation in Lake County.
Beasley denies wrongdoing, pleading not guilty to two counts of murder and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The first group of prospective jurors arrived at the Lake County Courthouse Wednesday morning. A second jury panel arrived in the afternoon.
Some prospective jurors were excused from service because the trial would create an undue hardship for them. The others filled out jury questionnaires.
Fresh panels are expected to go through the same process Thursday.
The attorneys are set to give opening statements on Nov. 7. The prosecution would begin presenting evidence that day.
Both sides estimated arguments and testimony could take four to six weeks.
Jeremy Walsh is a staff reporter for Lake County Publishing. Reach him at 263-5636, ext. 37 or jwalsh@record-bee.com. Follow the case on Twitter, @JeremyDWalsh or #RobbyBeasley.
