John McNeil Set Free

The former Kennesaw resident pleaded guilty to a lesser crime of manslaughter in connection with the Dec. 6, 2005, shooting of Brian Epp.

Freedom for Kennesaw Man Convicted of Murder

Prosecutors agreed to a plea deal that will end John McNeil's years-long legal fight.

His case pending before the state's highest court, the same court that in 2008 upheld his murder conviction, former Kennesaw resident John McNeil today pleaded guilty to a lesser crime of manslaughter to end his years-long legal fight. McNeil was sentenced to seven years in prison and 13 years probation on the manslaughter charge, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was credited with seven years time served and was expected to be released immediately, according to the AJC. McNeil's plea was entered just days after his wife and staunchest supporter died. Even as she waged her own personal battle with breast cancer, Anita McNeil maintained that her hubsand was only guilty of trying to protect his family on Dec. 6, 2005, when he…

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Kennesaw Man Convicted of Murder Could Be Released

Tuesday, John McNeil's years-long legal fight could come to an end.

After John McNeil was sentenced to life in prison for fatally shooting a man at his Kennesaw home in 2005, supporters spent years fighting for his freedom. Tuesday, that years-long legal fight could come to an end, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. McNeil, whose wife died of breast cancer on Saturday, is scheduled to go before a Cobb County Superior Court judge and plead to a lesser crime of manslaughter, a move that could allow him to leave state prison as early as next week. McNeil is serving life in prison for aggravated assault and felony murder in the Dec. 6, 2005, shooting death of Brian Epp, the builder of his Kennesaw home. According to court documents, McNeil’s teenage son called to say that there was a strange man in…

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