Prosecutors say Jonathan McKinsey, a New York Times executive, was fatally shot by his elderly in-laws in a California parking lot while he was arriving for a supervised visit with his children.
McKinsey, 40, was allegedly killed on September 26 at Dublin Sports Ground in Dublin, California. Witnesses told authorities that Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen, both 77, took turns firing at him.
At the couple’s plea hearing on Monday, prosecutors said McKinsey had been at the sports facility to see his children under court-ordered supervision.
According to KTVU, Zhang and Chen each entered a not-guilty plea to charges of first-degree murder.
The hearing also brought new claims about the troubled family relationship. Chen’s attorney, Curtis Briggs, alleged outside court that McKinsey had previously threatened to hire a hitman to “get rid of” his mother-in-law.
Briggs said the couple bought guns in March 2026 because they feared their son-in-law, arguing that the firearms were obtained for protection rather than as part of a planned attack.
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The defense lawyer maintained that Chen and Zhang had not plotted McKinsey’s death, but became increasingly frightened as the family conflict intensified.
Court documents also contain allegations that McKinsey had threatened to kill his wife and her parents. The documents say he gave his children a book about a young girl whose mother had died.
“During our marriage, the children and I learned to avoid provoking Jonathan lest he became angry. In my experience, appearing agreeable or happy around him was sometimes a means of avoiding his anger,” McKinsey’s wife, Candice Jang, wrote in an August custody filing obtained by The California Post.
McKinsey and Jang married in 2010, but she filed for divorce in 2025. That year, Jang also sought a restraining order against him, while McKinsey filed for one against her in response.