Defendant Seeks Separate Trial from Wife, Daughter in Dublin Murder Case

One of three defendants accused of killing a 91-year-old Dublin woman in 2009 is seeking to separate his trial from that of his daughter and wife.

Ping Kit Li, 70, was in court Monday with his daughter, Rosa Pui Hill, 35, and wife, Mei Yuk Li, 57, for a trial in which Rosa Hill is . Her body was found stuffed into a garbage can in the shed of her home on the 7700 block of Peppertree Road on Jan. 7, 2009. Hill was found to have suffered extensive injuries, including from a stun gun.

According to authorities, the incident stemmed from a child custody dispute between Rosa Hill and her then-husband Eric Hill, who was living with their two-year-old daughter at the home of his grandmother, Selma Hill. Police said that when they arrived at the crime scene, Rosa Hill and Mei Li were attacking Eric Hill.

 Rosa Hill is charged with murder and other counts. Her parents are charged with attempted murder and burglary.

The trial began Monday, but the defendants’ lawyers and Deputy District Attorney Casey Bates will spend several weeks selecting jurors and filing motions to determine how the trial will unfold.

One filed Monday by Theodore Berry, Ping Li’s public defender, sought to separate his client’s trial from his wife's and daughter's.

Berry said he spoke with Li, who was in court with an interpreter, about separating his proceedings and waiving his right to a jury trial in lieu of a court trial, in which a judge would decide the verdict and sentence.

“In the interest of judicial economy and considering the fact that [Ping Li] is 70 years old, he is looking for a speedier process,” Berry said, adding that he wanted to discuss the issue further with Ping Li before returning later this week. Judge Kenneth Burr said he will hear matters related to Ping Li on Thursday.

Defense lawyers also discussed several media-related matters with Burr, who said he received a request to bring cameras and recorders into the courtroom from KTSF, a local Cantonese-language television station.

“I’m not that excited about it,” Bates said of the request. “Many members of our community are bilingual, including Mandarin and Cantonese, and it’s possible that they’ll be exposed to this information with an editorialized version of events. The media can still cover this case without a live video feed.”

Bonnie Narby and Barbara Thomas, Rosa Hill's and Mei Li's attorneys respectively, and Burr agreed.

“I want to have this matter tried once without having side matters that are problematic,” Burr said.

Narby also filed a motion to strike a statement made by Mei Li to a newspaper reporter with the Bay Area News Group. According to Narby, Mei Li did not give a statement to police but, while in custody at Santa Rita Jail, gave her recollection of events to a reporter who published an article based on the interview.

Bates said the reporter could be called as a witness during the trial.

According to the article, Narby said, Mei Li was at work when she was called by Rosa Hill, who was at the Peppertree Road home and seeking her mother’s help in retrieving her daughter from the residence.

Narby also asked Burr to strike a statement made by Mei Li to her son-in-law while she was incarcerated. Narby said the statement, made during a phone call, involved Mei Li telling her son-in-law that Rosa Hill should plead insanity.

“That statement, if used, would implicate my client, and impacts my client in a way that shows she was trying to concoct a defense,” Narby said.

Burr said he could not decide on the motions until he received transcripts, tape recordings and background related to the incidents. As of Monday, he said, the motions he had received from lawyers contained only summaries.

Lawyers also began setting a timetable for the trial.  Bates said the case “has more evidence than I have ever seen,” adding that 504 pieces were logged by authorities.

“You have a crime scene in the house, in a shed, two cars searched as well as three residences,” Bates said. “You also have a forensics search of computers done over a three-month period of time and DNA work.”

He estimated that prosecutors’ evidence would take four to five weeks to present at trial. Bates said he was assigned the case in early February and has spent the time since “diligently trying to make this case smaller” by paring witness lists.

Burr discussed jury selection, which he said would take place after he decided on the lawyers’ motions. He said he expected presenting at least three jury panels (a total of 84 prospective jurors) for selection before prosecutors and defenders choose 12 jurors and four alternates.