Community Corner
NAACP Wants McNeil Murder Case Re-Examined
The organization says the 2006 conviction should have instead been ruled as self-defense.
John McNeil shot Brian Epp, the builder of his Kennesaw home, after a shouting match in 2005.
McNeil said that Epp charged him with a knife, and he shot Epp in self-defense.
Some of the evidence in the case showed that Epp’s knife was in his pocket after police discovered the body and that he never raised his hands with the knife.
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McNeil was convicted in 2006 of killing Epp and sentenced to life in prison. He lost his appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court, with one justice dissenting.
Now, the NAACP is asking that the case be re-examined.
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The North Carolina and Georgia State conferences of the NAACP, in conjunction with the national organization, held a press conference and rally at 11 a.m. today in Marietta to support McNeil.
“Every father, every parent should be able to sleep soundly knowing they can defend their home. That is not the case today in Georgia,” said the NAACP's President and CEO, Benjamin Todd Jealous.
The rally, held outside the old courthouse on Waddell Street downtown, drew several supporters and media attention to what has become a racially charged case.
McNeil, a black man, was found guilty of aggravated assault and felony murder in connection with the shooting death of Epp, a white man.
During the rally, organizers pushed for McNeil’s release and say his actions were a result of self-defense.
McNeil’s wife, Anita, also spoke at the rally and said a female juror sent her a letter after the verdict saying she was “pressured into the decision.” McNeil wouldn’t reveal the juror’s identity.
Jealous also said that McNeil wasn’t charged until 274 days after the incident, a time when District Attorney Pat Head was campaigning for governor.
Ed Dubose, president of the Georgia NAACP chapter, said that the goal is to now take the fight from the Georgia Supreme Court to the court of public opinion to allow Georgians to understand the facts of the case.
Jealous directed supporters to the NAACP website, NAACP.org, to sign the petition for McNeil’s release.
On the day of the shooting, McNeil’s son called him to say that Epps was on their property threatening him. McNeil called the police to tell them he was rushing home and that Epps was there with a knife.
When he arrived home, he told his son to go inside and the verbal argument with Epp ensued.