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Professor Mysteriously Dies at Clothing-Challenged Hot Tub Party | Marianne Shockley Case Analysis
Dr. Todd Grande's 13-minute overview: the quickest complete way into the case.
Watch on YouTubeWhat happened
Marianne Clopton Shockley, 43, was a University of Georgia entomology professor. On May 11, 2019, she traveled to Milledgeville to meet Marcus Lillard, whom she was dating, and the pair later visited a private home east of the city. During the night, Shockley became unresponsive near the home's hot tub. Emergency personnel found her without a pulse and pronounced her dead. [CBS News](https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/marianne-shockley-2019-death-marcus-lillard-acquitted/)
The response was delayed while people at the property attempted to revive Shockley and contacted acquaintances for medical advice. Deputies found her on the pool deck with a head injury. While law enforcement secured the scene, the homeowner went inside and died by suicide. Authorities cautioned that the suicide did not establish responsibility for Shockley's death. [The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/05/15/one-strangest-cases-dead-professor-hot-tub-suicide-baffle-police/)
An autopsy attributed Shockley's death to manual strangulation. Investigators arrested Lillard, and a grand jury later indicted him for felony murder, aggravated assault, involuntary manslaughter, and reckless conduct. Prosecutors contended that he strangled Shockley during sexual activity in the hot tub. Lillard denied causing her death, and his defense argued that the evidence did not prove he placed his hands on her neck or establish what happened while he was away from the pool area. [CBS News](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/marianne-shockley-death-marcus-lillard-trial-48-hours/)
Lillard's trial began in Baldwin County Superior Court on April 4, 2022. After four days of testimony, the jury deliberated for roughly 35 minutes. On April 8, it found him not guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, involuntary manslaughter, and reckless conduct. The acquittals fully resolved the charges against him and must not be treated as merely a lack of conviction. [Macon Telegraph](https://www.macon.com/news/local/crime/article260247075.html)
The case is therefore classified as unsolved. The medical finding of strangulation establishes that the death was not explained as an accidental drowning, but the criminal trial did not establish who caused it.
