A New York woman who killed her former immigration lawyer will spend over two decades behind bars.
A Queens District judge handed Xiaoning Zhang, 27, a life sentence with the possibility of parole for the stabbing death of renowned 66-year-old immigration lawyer Jim Li. Zhang was found guilty and convicted by a jury of second-degree murder, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, menacing in the third degree, criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation, and harassment in the second degree.
“It is our hope that with this sentencing, the family, loved ones and legal community can find some solace in knowing the defendant has been held accountable for her crimes,” said Queens County District Attorney Melinda Katz, reported by The Island 360.
On March 11, 2022, the New York Police Department responded to Li’s immigration office in Flushing after reports of a disturbance. Upon arrival, they found the victim with stab wounds to the chest and neck and the defendant subdued by an office worker who witnessed the stabbing. Li was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to his wounds.
According to the Queens County District Attorney’s Office, three days prior to the fatal incident, Li had told informed Zhang he was dropping her as a client after she admitted lying on her asylum application to being raped by the police in China. In addition, the defendant had asked Li to help her take down a picture of her protesting in front of the United Nations building from the internet, but the victim refused. In a rage, Zhang started choking Li before the police told her never to return to the victim’s office.
Three days later, Zhang returned to the office armed with a pairing knife and a large kitchen knife. Then, minutes after confronting Li, the defendant started stabbing the victim viciously.
At 15, Li enrolled in the Chinese Army and later became a constitutional law student at Beijing University. While being a doctoral student, Li represented Beijing Workers Autonomous Federation and served two years in prison for his role in the Tiananmen Square protest movement.
Leave a Reply