Ex-con William Marshall was offered a 30-year prison term Wednesday for a guilty plea to running a former girlfriend’s car off the road so he could shoot her dead in the street.
William Marshall
Mercer County Superior Court Judge Robert Billmeier told Marshall “has a lot to think about” because if he goes to trial and gets convicted in the murder of Ruschell Fireall he could get 63 years before eligibility for parole, maybe more.
Marshall, 46, who has a record for assault and burglary, allegedly chased 42-year-old Fireall in his car as she was trying to escape with her mother in her car along Pennington Road on Nov. 16, 2012.
When her car crashed, Marshall allegedly jumped from his vehicle and fired repeatedly at Fireall as the victim’s mother watched.
Billmeier gave Marshall and his lawyer, Christopher Campbell, until Oct. 24 to decide on the plea offer, which was made by Assistant Mercer Prosecutor Michelle Gasparian.
In shackles and orange, Marshall appeared for the hearing, as did a couple of his friend and relatives of slain Fireall.
The suspect has been locked up since 10 days after the slaying, when he was arrested in Atlanta following an attempt to run thwarted by a Taser.