DUBLIN, Calif. (TCN) — A man and woman accused of fatally shooting their son-in-law, who was in the midst of a divorce and custody battle with their daughter, have both pleaded not guilty to murder.
On Sept. 26, Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen, both 77, allegedly shot Jonathan McKinsey at a park before fleeing the scene on foot. They were apprehended at a nearby intersection and arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit a crime.
According to court records obtained by KGO-TV, the couple’s daughter, Candice Jang, was in the middle of a divorce and custody battle with McKinsey, who worked as the head of engineering for New York Times Games. Court documents obtained by KGO-TV contain accusations from both parties regarding domestic violence.
McKinsey had been scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 28 after pleading not guilty to two counts of child abuse, according to KRCA. McKinsey, who was transgender, alleged Jang abused him and used anti-LGBTQ+ language toward him and claimed Jang tried to pull medical tubes from his body after a surgical procedure related to transition.
NBC News reports Zhang and Chen both pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, with a special circumstance of lying in wait, on Oct. 19. Chen’s attorney, Curtis Briggs, said Chen did not premeditate the alleged shooting and instead acted out of concern for her grandchildren and herself after witnessing something while McKinsey had a supervised visit with the children. Briggs did not specify what Chen had allegedly seen.
According to NBC, McKinsey had allegedly threatened to kill Chen multiple times. SFGate reports that according to Briggs, McKinsey allegedly threatened to hire someone to “get rid of” Chen. Briggs said the couple bought guns earlier this year, adding, “My client trembles in fear when she hears Mr. McKinsey’s name.”
A bail hearing is scheduled for Nov. 4, followed by a pretrial hearing on Nov. 23, per NBC. According to SFGate, both Chen and Zhang remain held without bail.
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