Man confesses to killing, brings body to lawyer's office

Frank Gluck and Melissa Montoya | The (Fort Myers, Fla.) News-Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Man kills neighbor, drives body to lawyer in pickup A Florida man who drove a dead neighbor to his attorney's office will not be arrested, his attorney said. The man claims he killed his neighbor in self-defense during a dispute.

FORT MYERS, Fla. — A man who drove a dead neighbor to his attorney's office claiming he killed him in self defense will not be arrested, his attorney, Robert Harris, said late Wednesday.

John Marshall walked into Harris' law firm Wednesday claiming he had killed a man in self-defense in Bokeelia and brought the body with him in the bed of his pickup.

Lee County Sheriff's deputies on the scene declined to confirm whether Marshall will be arrested or not.

Marshall spent the majority of Wednesday holed up at the Harris Law Firm.

At 10:33 p.m. Marshall, who had injuries, left his lawyer's office bound for Lee Memorial Hospital.

Marshall exited the practice wearing a black jacket over his head to avoid the news cameras waiting for him outside.

Marshall, told his attorney that he had wrestled the gun away from the other man and fatally shot him in the scuffle earlier in the afternoon, Harris said.

Marshall, 52, had a swollen lip, a freshly missing tooth, another tooth that is chipped and what looked like two broken thumbs, Harris said. Marshall said he brought the man to the attorney's office because he didn't know who else to trust.

Attorneys called 911 shortly after he arrived at the law firm about 4 p.m.

The two men had been in some sort of dispute over property work in Bokeelia, Harris said. Marshall had called the attorneys days before the incident saying he feared for his safety, Harris said. The lawyers said they had advised him to get a restraining order, he said.

"It's the cleanest-cut case of self defense I've ever seen," Harris said.

Marshall does have a pending criminal charge involving an assault with a weapon, Harris said. He did not elaborate.

Harris said Marshall told him he remembers little about the fight or the roughly 30-mile drive from Bokeelia to the law offices. He called his wife, Harris said, but doesn't remember the conversation.

"I believe he's in shock — probably now still," Harris said, a few hours after Marshall arrived. "He's still breathing heavy. He's looking like a man who lost the world."

The Lee County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday night only that investigators were looking into the death.

Harris said he's never handled a case involving a client bringing a body with him.

"They don't teach you about this in law school. That's for sure," he said. "I believe we've handled ourselves correctly, but I'm a little in shock myself. This is not something that happens every day."