Franklin County jury nearly seated in double-homicide trial

The jury pool for a double-homicide trial in Franklin County Superior Court has been reduced by half with many people citing hardships if asked to serve for at least one month.

Attorneys on the trial of Prudencio Juan Fragos-Ramirez hope to seat a panel Oct. 6 from the remaining jurors.

They started jury selection Monday with 104 people.

Fragos-Ramirez, 26, is accused of killing his girlfriend and her 3-year-old son in July 2015.

Maria G. Cruz-Calvillo, 18, and Luis F. Lopez-Cruz were shot, and then their car was set on fire. Their bodies were discovered as firefighters put out the blaze by Scooteney Reservoir near Othello.

Fragos-Ramirez had recently started dating Cruz-Calvillo. He is charged with two counts of first-degree murder.

This story was originally published October 5, 2016 at 6:49 PM with the headline "Franklin County jury nearly seated in double-homicide trial."