Trial begins for Mother, Daughter in Murder of 91-Year-Old Woman and Attempted Murder of Her Son

The trial of two people who are charged in connection with the death of a 91-year-old Dublin woman whose battered body was found in a garbage can outside her house begins Wednesday morning.

The trial of will take place at the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland.

Police said Selma "Sally" Hill had been beaten, choked and shot with a stun gun before she died. Her body was found Jan. 7, 2009.

Rosa Hill, 35, has been charged with murdering Selma Hill and of attempting to murder Eric Hill, who was Selma Hill's grandson and the suspect's estranged husband.

Rosa Hill's mother, Mei Li, 57, is accused of the attempted murder of Eric Hill. Rosa Hill's father, Ping Kit Li, 70, has also been charged with attempted murder and burglary.

Theodore Berry, Ping Li’s public defender, from his wife's and daughter's.

“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 in an . Ping Li's trial is expected to begin Monday.

Authorities say the crimes were committed because Rosa Hill was trying to take her 2-year-old daughter from Eric Hill.

Eric Hill, the child's father, had sole custody of the child and was living with Selma Hill, at her house in the 7700 block of Peppertree Road.

Authorities said Eric Hill had expressed concern for his grandmother, whom he had not seen since he got home and was confronted by Rosa Hill and her mother. When police arrived, they say the two women had been assaulting Eric Hill with an electric device and a collapsible baton as well as using a handgun to threaten to take the little girl.

Police searched the area and found Selma Hill's body in a shed near the home, wrapped and stuffed in a garbage can.

Dublin Patch will continue to update this story during the trial.

Charles Nguyen contributed to this report.