Cabbie murder trial heads to jury on Thursday (June 29)

The prosecution and defense rested their cases in the First Degree Murder trial of Clay Marshall Curtis late Thursday morning (June 29).  Curtis is charged for the December 2014 shooting death of off-duty Front Royal Yellow Cab driver Simon Funk Jr.

On Thursday Clay Marshall Curtis elected not to testify in his own defense. Courtroom art Mark Williams/National Media-Royal Examiner

The bulk of three days of testimony was taken up by 32 witnesses called by the prosecution.  Most of the Commonwealth’s case was built upon establishing an evidence chain of custody of items, bullet fragments, eyeglasses and clothing found at or near the remote Shenandoah Farms area in which Funk’s body was discovered in the early morning hours of Dec. 10^th 2014.

However, two key witnesses – Funk’s girlfriend Carla Elliott and the defendant’s sister’s neighbor on Kildare Drive in Shenandoah Farms where the body was eventually found, linked Curtis to the victim and his van at various points on December 9.

After the prosecution rested at 9:34 a.m. Thursday morning, the defense called just three witnesses.  Those witnesses’ testimony was used to question the credibility of key prosecution witnesses.  Clay Curtis elected not to testify in his own defense.

Forensic testimony indicated Funk died of two bullet wounds, one to the lower abdomen and one to the back of the head.  No murder weapon was ever discovered and the prosecution admitted during its opening statement that its case was largely built on circumstantial evidence.