Mayoral candidate shot dead with AR-15 by brother-in-law in likely self-defense case: police

A recent Mississippi mayoral candidate was fatally shot after showing up at his estranged wife’s home and refusing to leave despite his brother-in-law’s reported demands, police said of the likely self-defense shooting. 

“It’s just a bad situation,” Soso, Mississippi, Police Chief Jimmy McCoy told the Laurel Leader-Call.

Jason Adam Marshall, 41, was fatally shot early Wednesday morning when he showed up to the house he shared with his wife for 12 years before their reported bitter divorce, the Laurel Leader-Call reported. Marshall was a candidate for mayor of Soso during the town’s special election last month, local outlets reported, and previously served as a volunteer firefighter in the town. 

Marshall reportedly showed up at the home shortly before 4 a.m. and was met by his brother-in-law who lives in the house next door, the outlet reported. The brother-in-law was armed with an AR-15 and reportedly demanded Marshall leave the residence, but Marshall did not comply. 

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Marshall reportedly reached for his own firearm, a 9mm handgun, prompting the brother-in-law to fire at the man multiple times, reports state. 

Soso Assistant Police Chief Tyler Hill told WDAM that both men fired shots during the incident. McCoy added in comments to the press that Marshall’s three children, whom he shared with his estranged wife, were inside the residence at the time of the shooting. 

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“He was a good man,” said Hill. “He was just struggling severely, and, unfortunately, it appears at this time that he just made a bad mistake.”

Police said that the shooting is a self-defense case, though an investigation into the matter is ongoing. The Jones County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the incident and will turn over its findings to the local district attorney’s office, the Laurel Leader-Call reported.

Marshall allegedly had violent outbursts with his family before his death, including in February of last year when he reportedly loaded a gun and threatened to kill his brother-in-law, the outlet reported, citing a divorce complaint.

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Marshall claimed in divorce proceedings that his wife used illicit drugs and made illicit videos, according to the Laurel Leader-Call, and she had allegedly threatened to take his children to his parents’ home in Georgia. 

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A judge granted Marshall’s wife an emergency domestic protection order and temporary custody of the children in October after Marshall was ordered to undergo a mental health assessment to regain visitation rights of his kids, according to the Laurel Leader-Call. 

Law enforcement were still awaiting autopsy reports as of last week amid the investigation, WDAM reported.