UPDATE: CBS "48 Hours" producer in attendance for Day No. 2 of Lillard trial

2:28 p.m. // Wednesday, April 6

Day No. 2 of testimony in the Marcus Lillard trial continued Wednesday morning on the fourth floor of the Courthouse downtown.

Prior to the trial, there was some speculation about whether or not any national media would show up. On Wednesday, a producer named Ryan Smith with CBS' "48 Hours" attended the trial and will document the proceedings. Aside from that, however, the media in attendance has been limited to local and Macon.

Several witnesses were set to testify on Wednesday afternoon, all former sexual partners of Lillard. The testimony is relevant, based on the fact that the District Attorney's Office is contending that Lillard unintentionally "manually strangulated" his girlfriend, Marianne Shockley, while engaging in sex in May 2019.

Toxicology reports also were revealed. Lillard tested positive for cocaine, while Shockley's blood alcohol content was .11. Shockley also had a relatively high amount of "ecstasy" in her system, according to the toxicology reports. The third man there that night – Clark Heindel – also had ecstasy in his system during his autopsy. Heidel committed suicide in his bedroom shortly after law enforcement arrived on the night of the incident.

WMAZ/Channel 13 did a solid job of recapping the first day of testimony, which can be reviewed below...

Shockley was a University of Georgia professor and Lillard's girlfriend. The pair first met years ago while Shockley attended Georgia College. She grew up in Morgan County and Lillard in Johnson County.

Lillard is going on trial for one count each of felony murder, aggravated assault involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct. He is facing several hurdles. First, he already was on “first offender probation” when he was arrested in May 2019. He previously had been sentenced to 20 years on probation following a drug bust in his office at a local car dealership, where he was working at the time. First offender probation means that a judge, in theory, can “re-set” the entire 20-year sentence and order Lillard to prison, even if he’s found not guilty on the murder charge but guilty on a lesser charge.

The case is one of the strangest in recent memory, not just around here, but anywhere in Georgia. According to Lillard's first few interviews with detectives back in 2019, he said that he and Shockley then arrived at the rural home of Clark Heindel around 7 p.m., where they smoked some more marijuana, according to interviews. Lillard and Heindel then began playing the bongo drums and the accordion. Eventually, Lillard and Shockley disrobed and jumped in the pool, according to Lillard's statements, while Heindel hung out closer to the porch of his house. Lillard denied having any sexual contact with Shockley that night, and he insists that “they just kissed.” During each of Lillard’s first two interviews, he asserted that he eventually decided to walk around the woods and gather firewood for roughly 15 minutes. After returning, Lillard said that he found Shockley unconscious in the hot tub. At that point, Lillard asserts, he picked up Shockley and dropped her in the deep end of the pool in an effort to resuscitate her. In the process, Shockley sustained a head wound, asserted Lillard, adding that he then swam with Shockley to the shallow end and carried her up out of the pool.

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