Family of slain ASU student protests plea deal ahead of sentencing

Bayan Wang | The Republic | azcentral.com

The family of an Arizona State University student who was shot to death in a 2016 roadway incident is urging a Maricopa County judge to throw out a plea agreement that reduced a murder charge against the woman accused in the killing.

The family's attorney held a vigil Monday to draw attention to the case.

Holly Davis, a then-32-year-old Mesa woman, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder along with other counts in connection with the Jan. 16, 2016, shooting death of Yue Jiang, a 19-year-old ASU student from China.

Jiang was shot and killed near Broadway Road and McClintock Drive while driving with her boyfriend sitting next to her. Tempe police said Davis rear-ended Jiang's vehicle then got out of her car and shot the woman, whose vehicle then veered into an oncoming car, injuring five other people.

Davis initially was charged with first-degree murder and a host of other counts related to the incident, which occurred in midafternoon near a busy intersection.

But in February, prosecutors and defense lawyers agreed to a plea that lowered the murder count to second-degree murder, which would result in a 25-year sentence that could see Davis out of prison at some point.

That has stirred outrage among family members and friends in the United States and China.

“We are demanding that this case go to trial on first-degree murder charges,” Daniel Deng, an attorney representing the victim’s family, said.

Jiang’s family, friends, and the Arizona Chinese Association held a vigil for Jiang on Monday morning in Tempe, openly rejecting the plea deal struck with Davis.

The victim's father, Yi Yong Jiang, 53, told The Arizona Republic through a translator Monday, "If the jury has a very basic moral baseline, they will find the defendant guilty of first-degree murder."

Amanda Jacinto, a spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, which is prosecuting the case, issued a statement that said partly, "the unfamiliarity of a foreign criminal justice system and confusion and frustration is not unexpected."

"In this case, the defendant will be sentenced to the maximum possible term of 25 years for 2nd Degree Murder without possibility of early release. This resolution has been explained to the family of Ms. Jiang. Differences in criminal justice systems and cultural and language challenges are matters we continue to address as best we can and will not impede our commitment to doing all we can to help Ms. Jiang’s family as we head to sentencing in this case.”

Davis' sentencing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. June 15.

An online petition that has garnered over 6,500 signatures asks that Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Warren Granville revoke the agreement, calling it “unjust.”

“The Jiang family, friends, Arizona State University fellow students, both the local, and the Chinese community abroad, are in disbelief and outraged,” the petition reads.

Deng said Jiang's immediate family, which is in China, never was notified about the plea agreement but instead learned about it in a news account.

MORE: Fatal Tempe street shooting shocks Chinese students at ASU, abroad

However, she said, "In general, prosecutors do contact next of kin and consider their input before offering a plea."

After Davis' arrest, Tempe police said the woman had been drinking the night before and wrote a note indicating she might do something violent.

Davis had previously served time in prison in Missouri for resisting arrest and a subsequent parole violation.

"We do not believe the murderer deserves a chance to come back to the society,'' said Katherine Xu, Jiang's cousin, in a statement. "The offer from the district attorney’s office makes my sister’s life so worthless. How can we agree to such a lenient punishment? How can we let the murderer get away with this so easily?"

Deng said he is holding a press conference on Monday to draw attention to the plea and put further pressure on prosecutors and the judge to revoke the deal and move forward on the original murder charge.

Vigil held for Yue Jiang, an ASU student killed in 2016 Family, friends, and the Arizona Chinese Association held a vigil Monday morning for Yue Jiang, an ASU student who was shot to death in 2016.

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