The case of a Kennesaw man, convicted of killing an armed trespasser on his front lawn, is coming to an end.

John McNeil and the Cobb County District Attorney have reached a deal in which McNeil will plead guilty to a lesser charge and will be freed.

Under the agreement McNeil will plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the 2005 death of Brian Epps.  He will be sentenced to 20 years in prison, with seven years to serve.  But since McNeil has already served more than seven years, he will walk out of court a relatively free man.

McNeil will still be on probation for 13 years.

The case began in December of 2005.  Epps, who had done work on McNeil's house, came back onto the property.

McNeil's son called his father to tell him that a man was walking in the backyard.  According to McNeil, he heard the man approach the boy and recognized Epps' voice.  The son also says Epps waved a knife in his face.

When McNeil arrived at the house he took a gun out of the glove compartment of his car, got out, and told Epps to leave.

Witnesses who saw the confrontation testified at trial that Epps began walking towards McNeil, so McNeil began backing up.

He fired a warning shot into the ground and yelled at Epps to leave.  Witnesses say that is when Epps "lunged" at McNeil and McNeil shot Epps once, killing him.

Police found a utility knife in Epps' pocket.

McNeil claimed self-defense but was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison.

His appeal had already gone to the state supreme court, which denied his claim.

However, this past year, a judge granted McNeil's appeal and the case, once again, was heading to the state high court.

Despite maintaining his innocence, McNeil took the plea deal to avoid another round with the court, where five of the current justices had already ruled against him.

If his appeal had failed he would not have been eligible for parole for 30 years.

In addition, McNeil's wife, who had been battling cancer, passed away this past weekend, leaving their kids without a parent.

Under the deal McNeil will enter his plea in the Cobb County Superior Court on Tuesday morning and, barring any unforeseen circumstances, should be able to go home that afternoon.