An Ashland County judge approved Thursday a joint motion for a gag order requested by both the prosecutor's office and the defense.
The order prohibits Shawn Grate and the counsel for all parties from discussing the facts of the case, evidence in the case, statements surrounding the credibility of the defendant and potential theories of the case with the media.
In accordance with the order, the judge instructed the Ashland County Sheriff's Office to enforce the gag order.
Grate was indicted last month on 23 counts including aggravated murder in the deaths of Stacey Stanley and Elizabeth Griffith. Their bodies were found in an Ashland home where a third victim was being held captive by Grate before she was found by police.
Police are also investigating whether he is connected to the deaths of women in Franklin, Richland and Marion counties.
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