During the years he lived in Roanoke, he had multiple run-ins with police, with a criminal history dating back to 1998 in Virginia, according to public records.

Neal's convictions included petit larceny, burglary and resisting arrest, according to records from the Roanoke City General District Court and the Roanoke City Circuit Court. He was acquitted of a charge of assault on a law enforcement officer in January 2011, according to court records.

James Bible, an attorney in the Seattle area, was Marcus Neal's uncle by marriage. He also represents families in wrongful death cases involving alleged police misconduct.

Now, the type of situation the lawyer helps other people with has hit home.

"Anytime something like this happens, it's important to recognize that human life is lost," he said. "Marcus has a family. Marcus was loved dearly."

Bible knows Marcus Neal's 95-year-old grandfather, who gets down on his knees and prays every night before bed. When his grandfather learned of Neal's death, he shook and cried uncontrollably, Bible said.

Marcus' death also shook his aunt, Bible's wife, "to her very core."

"Because they know how special he was to all of them," Bible said.

"And anytime something happens like this in a community where law enforcement – somebody that is paid for with our taxes – actually takes somebody else's life, the entire community should take pause," he said, "and we should all figure out how we can do better, as opposed to simply being in a space where we say all those other things about a person prior to the investigation, which often happens with law enforcement."