Fremont man sentence sentenced to life after failed attempt to back out of plea deal

DUBLIN — After failing to convince a judge that his “lying mother(expletive)” of a lawyer tricked him into pleading no contest to murder, a Fremont man has been sentenced to life in prison.

Marquice McClinton, 39, pleaded no contest to murder for a 29 years to life sentence just days into his murder trial, avoiding an even harsher life term in the process. After taking the deal, he tried in vain to convince a judge to let him out of it, arguing he didn’t understand the repercussions while explicitly agreeing to them in court.

But McClinton’s case is now final. On Dec. 5, Judge Stuart Hing formally sentenced him to the agreed-upon prison term, for the Oct. 25, 2023 killing of Marcos Chisley. McClinton has already filed court papers indicating that he will appeal.

According to police and eyewitness testimony, McClinton killed Chisley near some dumpsters behind a Smart & Final in Fremont, then rode his bicycle to a friend’s home and made a chilling confession.

“That (expletive) started laughing at me. If you want to laugh at me, I’ll (expletive)ing kill you,” McClinton allegedly told his friend and the friend’s girlfriend, according to the woman’s testimony in the 2024 preliminary hearing.

McClinton was arrested about two weeks after the murder. Police say he led them on a short foot pursuit on the day they detained him.

After pleading no contest, McClinton expressed regret in calls from Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, which were recorded by police. In the profanity-ridden call he repeatedly blamed his plea on his lawyer. A transcript from his change-of-plea hearing shows McClinton said he understood the consequences of pleading no contest and claimed willingness to go through with it.