Peculiar man accused of murder allegedly said girlfriend shot herself, threw gun in pond
A 49-year-old Cass County man is accused of murdering his live-in girlfriend Sunday and telling police she died by suicide after disposing of the weapon in a nearby pond and walking back to the spot where she was found dead.
Christopher M. Marshall, 49, of Peculiar, was arrested early Sunday after Cass County deputies were called to his home in the 23700 block of South State Route C. Inside the kitchen, responding officers found 50-year-old Alyssa Jordan dead of an apparent gunshot wound.
Cass County prosecutors charged Marshall with second-degree murder, armed criminal action and three counts of unlawful weapon possession by a convicted felon. Online court records did not list an attorney for Marshall as of Wednesday.
According to charging documents, 911 dispatch received a call around 1 a.m. from a man claiming his girlfriend shot herself in the cheek. Afterward, the caller advised, she had thrown the gun into a pond.
Dispatchers were also told by the caller that he had awoken to the sound of gunfire and tried to revive her.
Marshall allegedly “smelled of intoxicants” when met by responding sheriff’s deputies and was seen stumbling and slurring his speech. There was blood on his hands and socks, and one of the fingers on his left hand was missing, the deputy observed.
Inside the house, Jordan was on the floor near the kitchen island. Blood was on the stove and walls. A shell casing was near the dining room table. There were bloody footprints leading toward the basement.
During a search of the house, police reported finding three pistols stuffed between the mattress and the box spring. A fourth was in the closet.
Witnesses interviewed by police said they were visiting the area, staying the night at the home, and woke up to the sound of a single gunshot. One described hearing an argument shortly before the shot rang out. Marshall also allegedly went to the basement of the home and tried to get help from one visitor.
One witness said he went upstairs, saw Jordan and told Marshall to “call the cops or he would.”
During a police interview Sunday morning, Marshall allegedly said he had gone to take care of the dogs and walked in to find Jordan, his girlfriend of five years, on the kitchen floor. He allegedly said he hid the gun under the mattress because he was afraid of getting in trouble because he knows he is legally barred from possessing guns.
Later, the detective let Marshall listen to a playback of the 911 call where he allegedly said she shot herself, disposed of the weapon and walked back inside. He told the detective he had been drinking “quite a bit and was scared” because he had guns in the house, according to court documents.
As of Wednesday, Marshall was being held on a $500,000 cash bond in Cass County jail.
The Star’s Robert A. Cronkleton contributed to this report.
