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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NAACP Remembers Former Kennesaw Resident As a 'Warrior'

Anita McNeil, the wife of John McNeil, died Saturday of breast cancer.

The nation's oldest civil rights organization Monday remembered Anita McNeil, the woman who spent years fighting for her husband's freedom after he was sentenced to life in prison for fatally shooting a man at their Kennesaw home, as a woman of "boundless faith." McNeil died Saturday of breast cancer, and the NAACP on Monday afternoon issued the following statement. The national office of the NAACP was informed by the North Carolina NAACP State Conference that Anita McNeil, the wife of John McNeil and the biggest advocate for his freedom from an unjust murder sentence, passed away this Saturday. Anita McNeil was fighting her second bout with cancer. She had continued traveling and speaking out for her husband’s freedom even as she …

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Wife Who Fought Kennesaw Man's Murder Conviction Dies

Anita McNeil had breast cancer.

Anita McNeil, who spent years fighting for her husband's freedom after he was sentenced to life in prison for fatally shooting a man at their Kennesaw home, died Saturday of breast cancer. Her sister on Sunday confirmed her death to the Associated Press. John McNeil, Anita McNeil's husband, 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. Supporters, including Anita McNeil and the NAACP, said it was self-defense. Police said the same thing initially and cleared John McNeil of any charges. But nine months later, prosecutors charged him with murder, and a Cobb County jury convicted him and sentenced him to life in prison in 2006.  The case …

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