BALDWIN COUNTY, Ga. — The trial for the man accused of murdering a UGA entomology professor is set to begin Monday. Prosecutors say Marcus Lillard killed his girlfriend, Marianne Shockley, in May 2019 at his friend’s Baldwin County home.
Here’s a brief recap of the case…
The GBI says the first 911 call about Shockley was made around 1:06 a.m. by Clark Heindel, the homeowner and Lillard’s friend.
In the call, Heindel reportedly said Shockley drowned but was breathing, then later said she wasn’t breathing.
When first responders arrived around 1:20 a.m., they saw Lillard and Heindel administering CPR. EMTs and investigators wrote that Lillard and Heindel’s behavior seemed odd and their statements inconsistent.
Lillard told investigators he was in the woods gathering firewood when he came back and found Shockley unconscious. He believed she hit her head trying to get out of the hot tub.
He said he dropped her trying to pull her onto the pool deck.
Investigators separated the two men for questioning, at which time Heindel went into his master bathroom and killed himself.
Autopsy results later confirmed what investigators suspected -- Shockley’s cause of death was not drowning. They suggested murder by strangulation, meaning she was choked to death.
Lillard is charged with concealing the death of another, aggravated assault, and murder.
Jury selection is set to start Monday at the Baldwin County courthouse.
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