photo by: Gage Vota

Andrew Isaac Griffin, who is accused of the 2021 double homicide of Thomas and Angela Strussion, walks into his pretrial hearing in Belmont County Common Pleas Court on Monday.

Attorneys in the case of Andrew Isaac Griffin, accused of murdering Tom and Angela Strussion in 2021, discussed the testimony of Griffin’s former spouse with Belmont County Common Pleas Judge Chris Berhalter in a closed courtroom Monday afternoon.

Belmont County Prosecutor Kevin Flanagan and Griffin’s attorney Kate Clark came to an agreement during Monday’s hearing that the court be closed to hold a spousal privilege hearing.

Griffin is accused of double homicide in the deaths of the Strussions at their home on Trails End Drive near Belmont in September 2021. Flanagan said that the reason the court was closed for the hearing was due to the possibility that parts of the unnamed former spouse’s testimony elicited throughout the hearing could be prejudicial to either Griffin or the state.

“We’re not alleging that anything that comes from the former spouse of the defendant is prejudicial to him or to the state, but at this particular point in time, the court has spent an awfully long time talking about jury selection,” Flanagan said. “If information that is prejudicial to either party gets out, then it would be very difficult, I think, to ultimately seat the jury.”

He added that only in this particular instance, he believes that the state and the defense both agree that the courtroom should be closed for the spousal privilege hearing.

Berhalter asked Flanagan if there would be any possible way to accomplish the testimony without having to close the court to which Flanagan replied that due to the reason that the individuals’ testimony is required there is no other way other than to close the court.

Clark added that, as Flanagan said, certain parts of the spouse’s testimony may not be admissible at trial.

“We move to prevent that from being disclosed to the media at this point, given the nature of this case,” Clark said.

Berhalter agreed to close the courtroom for the former spouse’s testimony. Before the courtroom was closed, Griffin’s next pre-trial hearing was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Dec. 19.

Berhalter then asked both Flanagan and Clark if both parties had any issue with Griffin’s trial beginning at 8:30 a.m. March in Common Pleas Court, to which both said they did not.