A Flushing woman was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for stabbing her immigration attorney to death in 2022, just days after he dropped her as a client, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Wednesday.
Xiaoning Zhang, 27, of Kissena Boulevard, was found guilty by a jury last month of murder in the second degree and other related crimes for fatally stabbing 66-year-old Jim Li, a prominent lawyer known for his legal work and activism during the Tiananmen Square uprising in the People’s Republic of China in 1989. Trial openings began on Sept. 9, 2024, and closings occurred on Sept. 19, 2024. The jury deliberated for one day.
According to trial testimony, on March 11, 2022, police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing responded to a 911 call of an assault in progress at the law offices of Jim Li and Associates at 136-56 39th Ave. Zhang was insistent that Li, who was handling her asylum request pro bono, also work to have a photo of her at a United Nations protest removed from the internet. Li told her he could not do that, which enraged her. Zhang then admitted to Li that she had lied on her asylum application about being raped by Beijing police in China. Li then told Zhang he would no longer represent her in the immigration matter.
“Jim Li was an activist in China and became a well-regarded immigration attorney here in the United States, where he represented those seeking political asylum,” Katz said. Li agreed to represent defendant Xiaoning Zhang pro bono in her case until she admitted lying on her application and subsequently dropped her as a client. Zhang could not accept this, and days after being told never to return to his law office, she came back armed with two kitchen knives.”
Zhang was told to leave the premises, but she refused, and according to trial testimony, she instead reacted by grabbing Li by the neck and choking him. Responding police escorted Zhang out of the building and reiterated that she was not to return.
Three days later, however, on March 14, 2022, Zhang returned to Li’s fourth-floor office. She came armed with a paring knife and a larger kitchen knife. She confronted Li and repeatedly stabbed him in the chest and neck. A member of Li’s staff held Zhang until police arrived and placed her under arrest. EMS responded to the crime scene and rushed the 66-year-old immigration lawyer to Elmhurst Hospital Center. He later succumbed to his wounds and was pronounced dead.
“She violently and viciously stabbed Li, killing him,” Kats said. “A jury convicted Zhang, and today, a judge sentenced her to the maximum penalty under the law.”
Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder, who presided at the trial, sentenced Zhang to 25 years to life in prison.
“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,” Katz concluded.
