A Chinese-American couple from California has been charged with ambushing and fatally shooting their son-in-law at a sports park in Dublin, East Bay of San Francisco. The 77-year-old Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen appeared in court for the first time on Wednesday, facing arraignment by Alameda County Judge Diane S. Meier at the East County Hall of Justice.
Jonathan McKinsey, aged 40, was found shot and killed in the parking lot of Dublin Sports Grounds on September 26. Zhang and Chen were arrested inside a black Honda Civic near the scene and are currently held at Santa Rita Jail.
According to the prosecutor’s office, Zhang and Chen allegedly “ambushed” and plotted to murder McKinsey. Zhang admitted to shooting McKinsey while Chen invoked her Miranda rights. Surveillance footage reportedly shows the couple carrying out the shooting, corroborated by three eyewitnesses identifying them as the assailants.
They are facing charges of murder, conspiracy to commit fraud, intentional discharge of a firearm with gross negligence, and child abuse.
McKinsey, who was transgender, transitioned from female to male in 2010 and married his wife Candice Jang in 2011.
On Tuesday evening, police raided Zhang’s residence with several officers entering the house, but no arrests were made.
Court records reveal a tumultuous relationship between McKinsey and his in-laws, with allegations of discriminatory and violent behavior on both sides. McKinsey had filed for divorce in the past year, with mutual claims of abuse leading to protective orders against each other. He accused his in-laws and wife of discriminatory mistreatment, while Zhang alleged domestic violence against her and their children.
McKinsey, a graduate with a master’s degree in Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley in 2015, worked at The New York Times gaming section since 2023, with a recent promotion to Engineering Director in December 2025.
In October 2025, Zhang applied for a domestic violence restraining order against McKinsey, also seeking protection for her three children and mother from potential harm by McKinsey as per court records.
McKinsey faced charges of child endangerment and causing bodily harm to a child in October 2025, with Zhang alleging he had struck their son with his palm, leaving bruises on the child’s face as reported by The Mercury News.
During investigations, it was found that McKinsey had left his 2-year-old son alone at home while he went shopping. McKinsey denied wrongdoing but was ordered to attend parenting classes.
Zhang informed the police of an incident in 2018 where McKinsey forcefully grabbed her wrist, causing an injury.
Legal documents show that McKinsey applied for a restraining order against Zhang in December 2025, a day after which he received interim approval. Five days later, he filed for divorce, seeking sole legal custody and physical custody of the children.
McKinsey alleged that Zhang had been physically abusing him, hitting him with a frying pan, and verbally abusing their children. He also accused his mother-in-law, Chen, of calling him and one of the children “disgusting homosexuals” and “perverts”.
These cases were under the review of Judge Doris Ng, with multiple delays in hearings and ongoing custody assertions throughout the summer, along with the appointment of a private child custody evaluator in August. Further hearings on divorce and conflicting restraining orders were scheduled for October and December.