Dorchester man admits killing neighbor in dispute over barbecue coals, smoke

Shakeem McNeil, 31, pleaded guilty today to fatally shooting his neighbor, Carl Brown on Millet Street in Dorchester after Brown asked him to be careful with the coals from a barbecue fire he was tending and to try to keep smoke from the flames from reaching a neighbor with asthma, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports.

McNeil had been slated for his second trial on first-degree murder charges this week, after his first trial ended in a mistrial. Instead, he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and unlawful possession of a firearm, and was sentenced to 19 to 20 years in state prison on the manslaughter charge, followed by another 4 to 5 years on the gun charge, the DA's office reports. He also faces a separate sentence of 8 to 10 for being found in violation of probation on an earlier matter.

McNeil will be formally sentenced tomorrow for killing Brown, 44.

According to the DA's office:

On the evening of May 21, 2019, McNeil was present with a group as he grilled outside the victim’s side of a duplex home. Brown approached McNeil to ensure that he did not drop coal on the ground and that the smoke from the grill did not impact another resident of the building who suffered from asthma. During an argument over the grill, McNeil produced a firearm and shot.

As Brown's family members watched, McNeil shot him multiple times, the DA's office report. McNeil then sped off in a black SUV - and his wife followed him in another vehicle. Police found them at a Brockton motel, where he was arrested, the DA's office says.

Acting DA Kevin Hayden said in a statement:

Carl Brown’s humanity and decency led him to protect an asthmatic resident from potentially harmful smoke, and for that he was shot. This guilty plea ensures that the man who killed Carl Brown is held accountable, but it does not give Mr. Brown’s survivors what they truly want and deserve: to have their loved one back at their side. My office is here to support this family as they continue to grieve his loss