Crime & Safety
Jury Selection to Begin In Ellington Murder Case
Nearly three years after his arrest on charges of murdering his wife, the trial of Richard Dabate will get underway with jury selection.
ELLINGTON-VERNON, CT — More than four years after 39-year-old Connie Dabate was found murdered in her Ellington home, jury selection is slated to begin Monday in Rockville Superior Court for the trial of her husband, Richard, who is charged with killing her.
Richard Dabate, now 43, initially told police a home invasion occurred at the couple's Birch View Drive house on the morning of Dec. 23, 2015. He said he was tied up during the invasion, and that the intruder shot his wife.
Connie Dabate, a mother of two schoolchildren, was killed by a gunshot wound to the head.
Find out what's happening in Ellington-Somersfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
State police did not believe Dabate's account of what happened and, after what they called a "long and exhaustive" investigation, arrested him on Apr. 14, 2017. He is charged with first-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence and making a false statement, according to judicial records.
A 50-page warrant not only accuses Richard Dabate of having an affair, but getting a girlfriend pregnant and then scripting an involved story that included him being tied to a chair with an intruder "manhandling" him before shooting his wife.
Find out what's happening in Ellington-Somersfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
See the full story on Richard Dabate's arrest, including details on the arrest warrant, here.
Richard Dabate also came under fire after a probate court official said Connie Dabate had $76,958.07 to her name shortly after her death, but her accounts showed a balance of $6.42 in late October 2017. See the details here.
Richard Dabate filed a civil complaint against the probate court in November 2017 while defending the use of the funds to support the Dabate children, court records show.
In late January, Judge Julia Dewey, who will be presiding for the duration of Dabate's trial, denied a defense motion to change the venue. She also ruled some portions of recordings from interviews at Hartford Hospital are not permissible, but the majority of the recordings would be. A motion to suppress them had been filed by the defense.
This story includes reporting by Patch editor Chris Dehnel.
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