A Taiwanese woman who was tried three times on charges of murdering her husband's mistress and baby pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of voluntary manslaughter in a deal with prosecutors and will be deported.
Lin Li-Yun (林黎雲) "Lisa", 51, whose trials ended with two hung juries and a conviction that was tossed out on appeal, told the court that she was guilty of voluntary manslaughter in the 1993 deaths of Ranbing "Jennifer" Ji (紀然冰), 25, and her 5-month-old son.
"Based on all of the evidence and all of the testimony ... the court is satisfied the factual basis of voluntary manslaughter has been proven," Superior Court Judge William R. Froeberg said.
The lover was stabbed 18 times with a knife and her son was smothered. The son was fathered by Peng's then-husband, Tseng "Jim" Peng (彭增吉), a businessman who met his mistress in China and set her up in a California apartment.
The judge sentenced Lin to concurrent terms of 11 years in prison for the child's death and six years for the mistress' death.
She was given credit for time served in custody since the crime, and her release to the Immigration and Naturalization Service for deportation was to be immediate.
Deputy District Attorney Robert Molko told the judge the agreement was negotiated because of the history of the case.
"With two hung juries ... it seems to me there's the unlikely possibility of a jury reaching a verdict in this case," the prosecutor said.
Lin's husband reported finding his mistress and baby slain in their apartment on Aug. 18, 1993.
Lin's first trial ended in deadlock. A jury found her guilty in a second trial and she was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 1996.
But the conviction was overturned on appeal due to allegations that authorities ignored Lin's request for an attorney during questioning, had her husband question her in her native language and subjected her to hours of "threats, intimidation and bullying."
Her most recent trial ended last week with the jury split 8 to 4 in favor of convicting her of second-degree murder after six days of deliberations. The judge declared a mistrial.
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