William Elliott Sentenced to Life Without Parole

Posted on 8/11/2022

Defendant: William Elliott

William Elliott, 48, of Columbus, was sentenced yesterday to life without parole for the March 2020 murder of Maria Best. On June 23, a jury found Elliott guilty of aggravated murder, aggravated burglary, kidnapping and tampering with evidence. Franklin County Assistant Prosecutors Renee Amlin and Simon Huh handled the case.

Best, 23, was found dead inside her apartment at 1422 Phale D. Hale Drive on March 13, 2020. She had been stabbed numerous times and her throat had been cut.

Investigators determined that the night before her death, Best called the police to have several acquaintances, including Elliott, removed from her apartment due to allegations of violence that occurred in the previous days.

Elliott went to an apartment next door to Best’s apartment, where witnesses told investigators they overheard him discussing revenge.

Elliott, with the help of a co-defendant, restrained, kicked, taunted, and repeatedly stabbed Best for several hours.

Enhanced surveillance video obtained from OSU East Hospital helped establish a timeline of events, including movement in and out of the victim’s apartment while the homicide was taking place.

Police located a knife used to stab Best in an outside trash receptacle near her apartment. The knife was found to have DNA from Best on both the blade and the handle. Police also recovered rubber gloves in a separate trash can outside Best’s apartment with DNA that matched both Best and Elliott.

Judge Stephen McIntosh imposed life without parole for the aggravated murder count, 11 years for the aggravated burglary count and 11 years for the kidnapping. The two 11-year terms will run consecutively and are subject to an indefinite sentencing scheme under the Reagan Tokes Act, which could add an additional 5.5 years to the sentence. The judge also imposed an additional five years for being a repeat violent offender. In addition, Elliott was sentenced to 36 months for tampering with evidence, which will run concurrently with the other counts.

The co-defendant will be sentenced September 8, 2022.